


Where the hell did you come from?

by Rehizle_28



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-25
Updated: 2017-09-24
Packaged: 2018-07-26 18:30:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 105,873
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7585363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rehizle_28/pseuds/Rehizle_28
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Holy fucking shit.” </p><p>Waverly Earp did not ordinarily swear. But today was not an ordinary day. </p><p>'I went home with a woman!'</p><p>After a break up the last thing Waverly Earp wanted was a drunken hook up, especially a drunken hook up she couldn't remember.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> HI all, this is my first time posting on this site and indeed in this fandom so go easy on me! So Wynonna Earp and especially Wayhaught have owned my arse for the last few months and I've been dying to write something for it. So to celebrate the announcement of series 2 I thought I'd post this! The summary will more than likely change when I can think of something better for it. The title of the fic is unashamedly (mostly) from 'Heartbeat Song' by Kelly Clarkson. It's basically a Waverly and Nicole sleep together but Waverly doesn't remember her type of deal! So enjoy! More notes at the bottom.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, fucking fuck!”

Waverly Earp did not ordinarily swear, well not badly, she had been known to curse under her breath on occasion when a particularly belligerent customer refused to stop drinking, or when her sister had done something even more embarrassing than usual. For the most part Waverly’s cursing took place in her head, very rarely making itself heard.

But today was not an ordinary day.

For starters she was late, and anyone who knew Waverly knew how reprehensible she found that notion. She was a planner, she had every detail of her days planned out to the letter from the moment she opened her eyes in the morning to the moment she closed them at night. It brought order, it brought stability, it meant that Waverly was never surprised because if there was one thing a Waverly hated more than being late, it was surprises.

Secondly, she’d had an argument with her long time on-off boyfriend, Champ, or ‘Chump’ as Wynonna had so eloquently dubbed him, among other less eloquent, crasser nicknames. This morning’s argument had centred mostly around Champ being caught kissing another girl...again. despite the fact they had gotten back together only a few days previously Champ had decided it would be a great idea to get drunk and make out with a random girl.

In the bar where Waverly worked.

Waverly hadn’t been working, Champ had at least not done it in front of her. But, he had done in front of her co workers who were on their phones texting Waverly within seconds and she was in the bar a few moments later, dragging Champ away from the very bemused girl by his ear.

Her ‘boyfriend’ had been far too drunk to do anything other than pass out on the sofa, and come the morning Waverly had woken him in the appropriate manner.

A glass of ice cold water to the face at 6am seemed highly appropriate.

To his credit, Champ knew how to grovel. It was an art he had perfected over the years, allowing him to wiggle his way out of many a sticky situation. But this time Waverly hadn’t let the usual script even get underway before she was ending their relationship for good.

What had followed was almost an hour of Champ pleading, sulking, crying, bargaining and even mildly threatening at one point until Waverly delivered an ultimatum.

Get out of her flat, or she would call Wynonna.

Champ left pretty quickly. He’d had run ins with Waverly’s older sister before and was in no hurry to repeat the experience. As he was skulking out the door Champ couldn’t resist one last parting shot, telling Waverly she should call him when she’d ‘stopped PMSing and being so unreasonable’.

Waverly was now down one trainer, but the loud clunk the shoe had made as it had connected with the back of Champ’s head made it worth it.

Now because of Champ the chump Waverly was running late on the one day she absolutely knew she couldn’t be late.

She’d applied months ago for a history research fellowship just before finishing her undergraduate degree, and after an agonising period of silence she finally received the letter she had been waiting for, an invite to interview from the heads of the history department. Waverly had spent hours preparing her presentation, double checking, triple checking, quadruple checking every single one of her references and facts until she was reciting her presentation in her sleep.

Now not only was she late but her car had decided that today of all days would be the one where it refused to start. Hence the unusual and very loud triad of expletives that were currently tumbling from her mouth.

“Shit eater!” Waverly fumed, lashing out with her foot she kicked her car tyre as hard as she could, wincing as pain shot through her foot. “Eat shit!”

“Waverly?”

The sound of the sheriff’s voice had Waverly’s head whipping round, skin flushing at the realisation she had been caught cussing out her car. “Ummm sorry Sheriff. I didn’t realise you were there.”

“I would expect that kind of language from Wynonna but never from you.” Nedley’s voice held no sting, in fact he sounded slightly amused. “Am I to assume there is something wrong with your car?” “It won’t start!”

Waverly all but wailed, her panic raising by the second as she realised she had less than twenty minutes to make it to the university. “And I have the most important interview of my entire life in less than twenty minutes and no way to get there and if I don’t go then the rest of my life will have no meaning and I may as well just give up now and resign myself to an eternity of being a small town waitress and...”

She may have been a planner and far more level headed than her sister but that didn’t mean that the infamous Earp flair for dramatics wasn’t present.

“Waverly!” Nedley’s grasped the young woman by the shoulders, giving her a soft, but firm shake, putting an end to her hysterical babbling. “I will take you to your interview.”

“You will?!” Waverly felt the pressure lessen in her chest as Nedley nodded and before the sheriff could say anything else she had grabbed her books and was running off to his squad car.

“Earp’s.” Nedley muttered under his breath.

Waverly was so nervous that she barely listened to a word Nedley said as he drove (too slowly in her opinion) over to the university. She thought he might be talking about his new deputy but she didn’t catch the name nor did she care too, all her thoughts fixed solely on her impending interview. Whoever the new deputy was they had clearly made a good impression on Nedley, the sheriff was smiling and gesturing with his hands as he spoke. Waverly made sure she nodded and muttered in the right place and as Nedley pulled up in the parking lot of the campus she was out the door before the car had even come to a stop, a garbled thank you being tossed over her shoulder.

The interview went remarkably well, arriving less than 30 seconds before it was due to start meant that Waverly had no time to be nervous and was thrust straight in front of the panel, all of whom regarded her with stern, unfriendly eyes. The first few words of her presentation were shaky but the further she got the more confident her voice became; this is what she had been born to do. This was why she had spent many a long night pouring over old books, eyes straining to read the small faded print. This was why she had spent the last four years of her life studying languages that had long ceased to be relevant and events that most people had forgotten.

The focus of her application was an area called the Ghost River Triangle, it stretched out beyond the boundaries of Purgatory and into the surrounding countryside. There were lots of myths and legends about the strange goings on inside the triangle, people vanishing, tales of monsters and apparitions. Despite the interest in the area, there was very little solid historical research about Ghost River, and this was a niche that Waverly wanted to explore. She had a personal interest in the time and area, her ancestor was Wyatt Earp, famous outlaw and Waverly relished the chance to explore her family history in more depth.

By the end of the interview the eyes of the panel had softened considerably and some were even smiling. Waverly had that effect on people, her bright personality and kind nature able to thaw even the frostiest of hearts. As she rounded off her speech with an impassioned statement about how honoured she would be to work alongside such distinguished and revered academics Waverly couldn’t help but smile to herself.

_Nailed it._

She was escorted out the door by the head of the faculty who smiled warmly at her and gave her a hearty handshake, promising to be in touch soon. Pulling her in a little closer he carried on in a lower voice that her prospects looked good. The door had barely closed behind him before Waverly let out a celebratory whoop, beaming from ear to ear she headed out into the car park, only to stop dead when she realised she had no car.

Heaving a sigh Waverly fished her phone out of her bag and dialled a number, hoping that her sister was out of bed.

* * *

 

Wynonna pulled into the car park twenty minutes later, heavy lidded eyes squinting in the bright morning sunshine.

“Why’d you drag me out of bed so early Waves?” The elder Earp yawned as Waverly slid into the passenger seat, tossing her books into the back seat, eyebrows raising at the multitude of empty beer cans and whiskey bottles littered on the seat.

“I told you. My car broke down this morning.”

“How did you even get here then?” Wynonna pulled sharply out into the road, earning herself a sharp beep of the horn from the guy behind them. She flipped him off without looking, causing Waverly to wave apologetically at the now very irate man.

“Nedley dropped me off.” Waverly replied.

“Wow, first time in a cop car. You following in my footsteps?” Wynonna shot her sister a sly grin.

“I highly doubt it Wy, I was sat in the front not the back.” Wynonna chuckled at her response, one hand rubbing her eyes as she yawned again loudly.

“What time did you get in last night?”

Wynonna wrinkled her nose as she thought. “I’m not sure, is it still considered last night if it’s light out when you get back?”

“No.”

“Right well, sometime this morning then.”

A silence descended on the two sisters as Waverly waited for Wynonna to ask how her interview went, it became apparent after a few seconds though that Wynonna was not going to ask.

With a soft sigh Waverly took matters into her own hands. “Aren’t you going to ask about my interview?”

Wynonna jerked in her seat at the sound of her voice, as if she had forgotten her sister was there. “What? Oh yes! How was the interview?”

“It went really well, I don’t wanna jinx it but I have a good feeling.” Waverly grinned, remembering the rush she’d felt as she presented.

“I’m really proud of you baby girl.” Wynonna reached over and squeezed one of Waverly’s hands. “But don’t you want to get out of this town? I mean Purgatory isn’t the place to spend your entire life.”

“I know, but I’m happy here.” Waverly twisted in her seat slightly as she spoke. “Besides leaving didn’t work so well for you.”

Wynonna’s face scrunched up into a mild grimace, she’d run away from home when she was fifteen after the death of their father and a string of run ins with the law. Her fortunes hadn’t improved much and she’d been driven back to Purgatory a couple of years earlier when Uncle Curtis has died. There was still a lot of things Wynonna refused to talk about, but Waverly gathered from the small snippets she did hear that things had not gone well for Wynonna whilst she had been away. There were times she found her sister staring into space, eyes glazed over, expression pensive.

“But you’re better than me Wave, you always have been. You could be so much more than this town.” Wynonna squeezed her hand again before replacing it on the steering wheel.

Waverly didn’t know how to respond, but thankfully Wynonna launched into a story about her antics with Doc the night before, her trademark smile back in place as she swung the track up onto the dirt track that led out of town and towards the homestead. The story involved a convoluted explanation of how Wynonna and Doc tried to bag themselves free bottles of whiskey at a bar in the next town over, needless to say their efforts had been futile and from the sounds of things they had gotten themselves kicked out of the bar in the process. By the time it was finished they’d pulled up outside the homestead, Wynonna was out the door and inside before Waverly had finishing retrieving her books from the back seat.

“Willa called.” Wynonna’s voice drifted up from the sofa as Waverly placed her books down on the table. The youngest Earp closed her eyes and cursed softly under her breath.

There was little love lost between Waverly and her eldest sister, for some reason they had just never clicked as children. Maybe it was the age gap, or the fact that Waverly was so different to both Willa and Wynonna, whatever it was the eldest Earp had taken every opportunity to torture her little sister.

The happiest day of Waverly’s life had been when Willa had left for college.

“Yeah, what did she want?” Waverly tried to sound nonchalant, but knew the slight quiver in her voice gave her away.

“She’s coming home to visit soon” Wynonna hesitated before she spoke again. “With Bobo.”

Bobo Del Rey was Willa’s husband and in Waverly’s mind the creepiest man she had ever met, and that took some beating considering she worked in a bar. He had grown up in Purgatory, a few years older than Willa. The two could not have been more different but they both bonded over a shared interest.

Torturing Waverly.

Of the two, Bobo was the cruellest. He had a mean streak a mile wide and delighted in making people feel bad about themselves. Waverly had been an easy target; not as confident as Willa, nor scrappy as Wynonna she never fought back.

When she was six he had told her that she wasn’t an Earp. He told her that she was the product of an affair, Waverly didn’t know what that word meant, but she understood perfectly everything else Bobo was saying.

That was the first time she cried to Wynonna.

The middle Earp reacted in spectacular fashion, breaking Bobo’s jaw with a right hook the next time she saw him and warning him to stay away from Waverly and Willa.

Their mother had banned him from the house and Ward Earp had to be talked out of getting his shotgun and taking Bobo’s kneecaps off. Wynonna had definitely inherited her rash nature from her father.

After both their parents had died Bobo had come slinking back into Willa’s life, following her when she left for college six months after Wards death. Once she graduated she’d come home and announced proudly that Bobo had asked her to marry him.

Neither Wynonna nor Waverly went to the wedding.

“I can call her and tell her not to come?” Waverly started at Wynonna’s voice close behind her, turning she found her sister watching her, a concerned look on her face.

Waverly shook her head. “No, it’s ok. We’re all adults now right? We should be able to act like it.”

“Damn straight!” Wynonna agreed. “But if he says anything you don’t like let me know and I’ll break his jaw again.” The threat was accompanied by a wink to let Waverly know she was joking. Wynonna had spent eight months in a juvenile detention centre for her last attack on Bobo and Waverly refused to let her get locked up for defending her again.

“How long will they be staying?”

Wynonna shrugged. “She didn’t say. Knowing Willa, it could be anywhere between a week and a few months.” Moving away from Waverly she yanked open the fridge and pulled out a cartoon of juice, taking a swig directly from the cartoon she fixed Waverly with a bright smile, ignoring the disapproving look that was being sent her way. “Anyway, enough about that. I’ve had a _great_ idea!”

“Does it involve drinking?”

“Why yes baby girl it does. We’re going out tonight! We need to celebrate you smashing your interview, and me...well I just want to drink.”

“Figures.” Waverly muttered, “I’m not sure I’m really up for going out Wy, I was up really late last night and then early this morning and I broke up with Champ for goo...”

“Oh my god! Another reason we definitely have to go out! To celebrate you finally getting rid of Champ the cu...”

“Wynonna.” Waverly warned, her sister lapsed into silence, a flash of guilt passing across her face before she started speaking again.

“We need to get you on the rebound baby girl.” Closing the fridge door, she crossed the kitchen and placed her hands on Waverly’s shoulders. “Get you back on the horse, so to speak.”

“I don’t really think that’s...”

“Come on Waves, it’s been far too long since we went out together. Pleeaaasseee?” Wynonna pouted, the expression she had been using since she was a toddler to get what she wanted.

Waverly couldn’t deny her. “Fine. But we’re not going to go overboard.”

* * *

 

In hindsight Waverly should have realised that asking Wynonna not to go overboard was like asking the leaves not to fall off the trees in the fall. It was inevitable.

A glance at her watch told Waverly that it was a little past 11. The bar they were in was heaving, a mass of sweaty bodies pressed together, the air hung heavy and the smell of sweat was only slightly edged out by the aroma of fruity drinks. Waverly was sipping on one of these fruity drinks, enjoying the tingle the cocktail sent round her body with each sip. Wynonna was sat across the table from her, a glass of whiskey grasped delicately between her fingers, eyes roaming round the bar on the lookout for in her own words ‘a stud for Waverly to ride’, despite Waverly telling her over and over again that she wasn’t looking for rebound sex.

Beside her Chrissy Nedley nodded her support for Wynonna, Waverly turned a playful glare on her best friend since kindergarten. “Traitor.” She muttered.

“Sorry Waverly, but Champ was no good for you and your sister is right, a rebound is exactly what you need.” Chrissy accepted the high five that Wynonna sent her way, shrugging as Waverly scowled at her.

“I’m going to get another drink.” The youngest Earp mumbled, slipping a little less than gracefully off her stool and heading for the bar.

Waverly was not a big drinker, that title was taken by her father and sister, but after the day she’d had Waverly felt inclined to let her hair down, even if she was adamant that she wasn’t looking for rebound sex. In the spirit of having a good time Waverly accepted the offer of shots from two old high school friends, naturally they had heard about her break up with Champ, Purgatory was a small town after all. It appeared Champ had been drowning his sorrows in Shorty all day, lamenting to anyone that would listen that he had been unfairly treated and Waverly would be back soon enough.

That had made Waverly scoff and shake her head vehemently, there was no way on this earth she was taking Champ Hardy back. Accepting her third shot she knocked it back, wincing at the sharp taste, the drinks had started to take effect and she found herself enjoying the pleasant buzz spread round her body.

One of the boys, Billy, decided to try his luck and made a thinly veiled attempt to hit on her. Unfortunately for him Waverly had seen the looks he was sharing with Wynonna across the bar, including her sisters pointed and obvious head jerk in Waverly’s direction. She had let him down as gently as possible before stomping back across the bar to give Wynonna a piece of her mind. Chrissy had seen the look in her best friend’s eye and decided to avert a big Earp argument (they had a tendency to get violent) by shoving more shots into both of their hands. That was the last clear memory of the night that Waverly had.

* * *

The first thing Waverly noticed when she awoke the next morning was the pounding in her head. Raising her hands, she pressed the heels of her palms against her eyelids, willing the pain to subside, after a moment or two the pounding had reduced to a dull ache and she chanced opening her eyes.

The second thing Waverly realised was that she was _not_ in her own room.

Her bleary eyes snapped open at this realisation, but she didn’t move, eyes roving round the room. The sunlight streamed in through the windows illuminating the room in a bright light. The walls were whitewashed and simple, with no decorations, boxes littered the floor, overflowing with various bits and bobs. It appeared whoever lived here was a recent occupant, or in the process of moving out.

Waverly couldn’t believe it.

Frantically she tried to recall the night before, her memory a series of fragmented flashes. Shots with Wynonna and Chrissy, dancing, more shots, then more dancing, someone’s hands on her hips, lips on skin. The flashes were getting faster now but now less coherent, heated kisses in a cab, falling onto a soft bed, nails raking down her sides. Pleasure, immeasurable pleasure. A soft smile, accompanied by soft brown eyes as lips descended down her body.

Lifting the duvet that covered her Waverly could confirm that she was still _very_ naked.

She couldn’t believe it. After all her insistence that she was not out to get laid she’d gone home with some guy.

A very attentive guy if her vague memories were anything to go by, Waverly could feel the slight ache between her legs that only came after a night of mind blowing sex and god knows there hadn’t been many of those with Champ.

Wynonna was going to have a field day.

Waverly was reluctant to turn her head to the right, fearful of what she might see next to her. Who had she gone home with? Waverly could not recall a face or a name, and the panic was starting to rise in her chest. She did not like being surprised and this was just about the biggest surprise she could have had.

Taking a deep breath and trying to steel herself Waverly closed her eyes and slowly turned her head until her cheek was resting against the pillow, with another deep breath she opened her eyes, no idea what she was about to see.

For a moment she saw nothing.

Whoever she had come home with was so cocooned up in the duvet that none of them was visible, she knew someone was there because she could hear light breathing. Pushing herself up onto her elbows, making sure to keep the duvet clasped firmly to her chest Waverly peered over to get a better look.

The only thing she thing could see was the back of her companion and the slope of their neck.

A decidedly feminine back and neck.

“Holy fucking shit.”

Waverly Earp did not ordinarily swear.

But today was not an ordinary day.

_I went home with a woman!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed that, please do let me know what you thought, kudos and comments appreciated! Let me know if you'd like to see more of this, I will continue writing but it'd be nicer if people actually wanted me to continue! You can find me on tumblr by searching Rehizle28, I don't do much on there atm but if people like the story I can use that to post updates and answer any questions you may have. I hope to have another chapter written soon but i have a deplorable habit of having at least 3 stories on the go at any given time, plus a full time job and a unhealthy obsession with video gaming so will do my best to update within the next few days! Until next time!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, I just wanted to say that I was blown away by the response to that first chapter! I was not expecting people to like it so much so to everyone who left kudos and comments thank you so much! I love all of you! 
> 
> I hadn't expected to update so quickly, but writing shorter chapters seems to help with productivity, who knew?! 
> 
> To the commenter who expressed concern at Waverly blacking out and the sex maybe not being consensual, that was never my intention and all of the sex in this story is consensual. This chapter does reiterate that everything was consensual but thank you for bringing it to my attention. 
> 
> Apologies for any errors, I don't have a beta reader and it's gone midnight here in the UK so am pretty tired. Enjoy!

The longer Waverly lay there, eyes fixed firmly on the sleeping person next to her, the more the memories of the previous night came back. She still couldn’t picture a face clearly, nor remember a name, but now she realised she was next to a woman a lot of the previous flashes made a lot more sense. The hands, too slim and delicate to be male, the lips too soft, and a hazy face that despite not being clear was definitely that of a woman.

Waverly also remembered a voice, whispering in her ear in the cab as fingers danced over her thigh, and then when they were back here, on this very bed, asking if this is what she wanted, those beautiful eyes, the only clear thing she can remember, searching for an answer, making sure that she was ok. Waverly may not remember the name or face but she did remember the intense desire and need for whoever this mystery person was, she remembered surging up to meet their lips in a kiss so heated it took her breath away. She remembered feeling worshipped.

Each new fragment of memory hit her like a truck, she was sure of one thing, she had never ever felt like this before. She had been with Champ, albeit on and off, for years, ever since high school. There had been a couple of other guys she had dated during the many breaks they had but none of them had made her feel anything spectacular and somehow she always ended up back with Champ.

Waverly wasn’t stupid, she knew the reason she always ended up back with him wasn’t because they were destined to be together, or that they were part of some epic love story. No, Champ had always been safe, comfortable, and predictable. There were no surprises with Champ, and it was perhaps for this reason that Waverly overlooked the cheating, accepted his lies that it wouldn’t happen again.

Because she knew that in the long run it didn’t matter, she wasn’t destined to spend the rest of her life with Champ. They were both using each other to pass the time until something better came alone, in Champ’s case something better was any girl who made eye contact with him. For Waverly she knew she would leave Purgatory, and when she did there was no way that Champ Hardy would come with her, nor would she want him too. 

Waverly was pulled rather sharply from her deep thoughts by a soft sigh from next to her, her head snapped round, but it appeared her companion wasn’t waking just yet. The bed covers shifted slightly before settling down again, Waverly couldn’t help the small exhale of relief that left her lips.

She didn’t know what to do, on the one hand she wanted to stay and put a face to the considerate and mind-blowing orgasm giver, but at the same time her flight instinct was kicking in. Waverly had never given her sexuality much thought before, she had only ever been with guys and that’s the way she assumed it would always be. But it appeared last night had given her something to think about, and she wasn’t sure she was ready to face someone who’s name she couldn’t even remember. It wasn’t exactly the most ideal time to ask.

_Hey so you gave me the best sex of my life last night but sorry what was your name? Also could you tell me where I can find my underwear please?_

She almost laughed out loud at the absurdity of the thought but caught herself at the last moment. She had two choices, she could wake up whoever was next to her and try and talk her way out of the most awkward situation of her life.

Or she could run away.

Levering herself up onto her elbows Waverly leaned over, craning her neck once again trying to get a better look at other woman.

Her movement on the bed caused them to shift slightly and Waverly was momentarily frozen as she watched the ripple of strong muscles at the motion, her mouth suddenly very dry and overcome with the urge to press her lips to the skin on display.

“Damn.” She whispered, she had never realised backs could be so sexy.

It was then that she noticed the tattoo.

It was small and positioned on the woman’s left shoulder blade, it looked like a star but Waverly couldn’t work out exactly what it was.

As she was leaning even further forward the woman let out a soft groan and started to turn over.

Time seemed to slow right down for Waverly and she had mere seconds to make a decision, stay and try and explain herself and find out the identity of her lover....or run away.

Fight or flight so to speak. 

The cowards part of her brain chose the latter.

In a flurry of naked skin Waverly scrambled out of the bed and within 5 seconds had managed to locate all of her clothes...except her underwear.

Pulling her trousers up her legs she tumbled out of the room and cast her eyes around wildly for the front door. Luckily it was right in front of her and as she tugged her shirt over her head she wrenched it open and fled, shoes dangling from one hand, bra in the other.

Bursting out of the apartment buildings front door Waverly didn’t stop running until she was round the corner and well down the road.

If she had looked back she might have seen a woman, wrapped in a sheet, leaning out one of the windows,  a confused frown marring her still sleepy face.

* * *

 

“And just where have you been?!”

Waverly winced as Wynonna’s voice sounded right by her ear as she attempted to sneak into the homestead. The elder Earp was standing just inside the door, arms folded across her chest and a mock expression of disapproval on her face.

“Jesus.” Waverly grumbled. “Have you been standing there waiting for me?”

“Pretty much all morning. I thought Gus was you, twice. She didn’t take too kindly to being shouted at.”

“Neither do I.” Waverly moved past her sister and walked somewhat gingerly into the kitchen.

“So, where the hell have you been?”

“Out.”

“Out where?” Waverly could hear the grin in her sisters voice but refused to turn round. “What’s that?” at the last minute Waverly remembered her bra, still clutched in one hand and frantically tried to hide it.

Unfortunately Wynonna was too quick for her.

“Well, well, well.” Wynonna dangled the bra in the air, a wide grin stretching her face. “What have we here?”

“That’s...I mean...It’s not...Oh shit.” Waverly buried her head in her hands as words failed her.

“Waverly Earp, you dirty fucking stop out.” Wynonna hooted gleefully. “What happened to ‘I don’t want to get laid Wynonna, I only just broke up with Champ Wynonna’”

“I wasn’t planning on it.” Waverly protested. “It just kind of...happened.”

“I’ve never been more proud.” Wynonna tossed Waverly’s bra behind her and pulled Waverly into a bone crushing hug that drove the breath from her lungs. “My baby sister finally removed the stick from her ass and decided to have some fun!”

“Wy!” Waverly tried to wriggle free but Wynonna kept her caught in a vice grip.

“I’m not done being the proud older sister, I don’t often get the chance to be proved right so you’re going to sit and enjoy it!”

“Ugh.” All Waverly wanted to do was slink upstairs and head to bed, but it appeared Wynonna had other ideas.

“So who were they?”

“Who?”

Wynonna pulled back and fixed her with an incredulous stare. “What do you mean who?! The person you went home with! I didn’t see you with any guys last night, but I did get a little distracted.” Her sentence was finished with a cough, the cough that always indicated that Dolls had stopped by.

“Dolls?” Waverly smirked.

“Maybe...but we’re not talking about me...”

“For once.”

“I heard that. No, you’re going to tell me everything! Starting with who it was. Go!”

“It was nothing really.” Waverly lied. “You wouldn’t know them.” She deliberately avoided using a pronoun, she didn’t want to flat out lie to her sister but she wasn’t sure she was ready to tell Wynonna that she had spent the night with a woman.

Hell she couldn’t even face the woman she’d slept with.

“What was their name? I know a lot of people.”

Luckily Waverly was saved from having to answer that question by the appearance of Gus. After exchanging pleasantries Waverly was finally able to escape and scamper up to her room, Wynonna tried to follow her but was waylaid by Gus who bad some choice words for the brunette concerning her drunken raiding of Gus’ private whiskey store the night before.

In the safety of her room Waverly flopped down on her bed and sighed heavily. The last 24 hours had been some of the strangest of Waverly’s life and her brain still felt like it was sprinting to catch up. Pulling out her phone, which, alongside her keys and purse, had thankfully stayed in her trousers she noticed she had several missed calls and texts.

A few were from Wynonna, with varying degrees of readability, the last one sent just after 3am was just a bunch of letters.

The rest of the calls and texts were from Champ. He had always been a drunk dialler, Waverly deleted the voicemail without listening to them, she couldn’t face listening to him whinge more. The texts like Wynonna’s ranged from barely legible to flat out impossible to read, but they all carried a common theme.

She should take him back. 

Waverly debated telling him to stop messaging her, but she knew giving him any kind of communication would translate to him as her giving him another chance, and that was something that was _not_ going to happen.

All Waverly wanted to do was sleep, but she knew she should get up and shower.  She was working the late shift at Shorty’s and wouldn’t have time to do it later. Groaning softly she pushed herself up off the softness of the bed and forced her feet to walk her to the bathroom.

As she stripped down a dark mark caught her eye in the mirror, stepping up close to the glass she inspected the bruise on the left hand side of her neck, right over her pulse point. Another memory of the previous night, talented lips and teeth attached to her neck whilst equally talented fingers curled inside her, Waverly’s thighs clenched at the memory.

The warm water felt amazing on her skin and for a while Waverly just stood still, allowing the water to run over her body, eyes closed and head tipped back.

Her brain was still struggling to process the events of the night before and it’s implications and the more she thought about it the more confused she got. The questions that she had filed away earlier that morning whilst she lay in that unfamiliar bed now came flooding back, each clamouring as loudly as it could to be answered.

Was she gay?

Was she bi?

Why had she run away?

Was she ashamed? 

Did she want to see the woman again?

The last question was moot anyway because even if Waverly had wanted to see her again she had no idea what her name was and no way to contact her. A quick check of her phone earlier had shown no texts or phone calls from unknown numbers, indicating they hadn’t exchanged numbers.

Waverly didn’t know if she was disappointed or relieved by this.

The other questions were no easier to answer, multiple answers coming to mind before swiftly flying off again. As she ran over again in her head Waverly couldn’t help but feel a flush of guilt at the way she had sprinted out the door like the hounds of hell were after her.

Her overarching memory of the night before, apart from the obscene amounts of pleasure, had been the considerate and caring way the other woman had taken care of every single inch of her, more so than Champ or any other lover ever had. Waverly hadn’t felt anything other than safe and the fact she couldn’t remember the name or face of the woman frustrated her more than she thought possible.

So instead of facing up to what was bound to have been a very awkward situation and trying to work through it Waverly had run away, and whilst there was part of her that wished she had stayed, her other conflicting side reasoned that it was a relief.

The thought she might be anything other than straight would be a lot to get her head around on a normal day, never mind with a pounding headache. Her entire world had been thrown into disarray overnight and she found herself feeling she like she was falling, with no knowledge of where the bottom was or which way was up.

Waverly Earp was not used to feeling lost.

She always had a plan, she always knew the next step, she researched, she prepared and she acted.

But in this situation she had no idea what she should do next, and there wasn’t anyone she could talk to about.

Well there was potentially someone but Waverly had left them lying alone in bed in a flat on the outskirts of Purgatory.

Running a hand through her hair Waverly huffed loudly, her head was hurting even more now and she knew she was just going round in circles.

Even when she got back into bed and tried to nap Waverly couldn’t shut her brain off, round and round the thoughts ran, drumming a beat into her skull that was becoming  unbearable.

Eventually she came to a decision. 

She was going to take a leaf out of Wynonna’s book of dealing with things.

She was going to forget that last night had ever happened.

* * *

It turned out that forgetting about that night proved a lot more difficult that Waverly had anticipated. Over the next few weeks she often found herself daydreaming about the passionate night she had shared with a stranger.

Ever eagle eyed Gus had noticed that something had changed and had asked Waverly a few times if there was something bothering her. Although perhaps it wasn’t difficult to spot as Waverly had a tendency to daydream as she was pouring pints of beer.

There’d been quite a lot of over filled beers in the last few weeks.

Waverly had been able to fob Gus off, claiming the reason for her lapses in attention were because she was thinking about her history fellowship application. Whilst this was true, she was still waiting to hear back from the university,  they had told her it would be at least a month before they came to a decision, so she still had some waiting to go. Gus seemed to have accepted her excuse but she often found Gus looking at her, a peculiar look in her eyes, as if she’d guessed more than Waverly was letting on.

Three weeks to the day since ‘that night’ as Waverly had taken to calling it in her head, Waverly was working the early shift opening Shortys. This meant getting up at the crack of dawn, something that Waverly did not like. This particular morning was unseasonably cold and Waverly shivered slightly as she approached the bar, pulling her cardigan tighter around her.

 It was as she approached the door that Waverly realised that something was amiss. For starters the door wasn’t shut all the way, something that Gus would never have let happen.

Heat thudding in her chest Waverly inched closer to the door, ready to bolt at the slightest sign of movement, hearing nothing she poked her head round the frame and into the bar.

The bar was empty, but whoever had busted their way in had left a real mess. Tables and chairs upended, smashed glass on the floor and several drying stains on the bar.

“That’s just great!” Waverly scowled at the carnage before pulling out her phone and dialling the police. “Nedley, it’s Waverly. The bars been broken into can you send someone round?”

Nedley promised to send someone immediately and Waverly hung up, her anger growing as she looked round again.

After a clipped phone call to Gus who was out of town seeing new suppliers, unable to come back until later that afternoon, Waverly explained the situation, trying her best not to curse. Once she made sure Waverly was ok Gus agreed that she should wait for the police, but she was pretty sure that it was probably just bored teenagers looking for something to do. This wasn’t the first time the bar had been broken into.

Stepping carefully over the broken glass Waverly went behind the bar to see what the damage was to the liquor stock. A few bottles were missing, further adding to the theory that this had been done by teenagers. Waverly growled in frustration, she had been hoping for an easy day but all chances of that had flown out the window.

The worst part was she couldn’t touch anything until the police arrived. When Waverly was stressed, angry or working through a problem she liked to clean, to give her something to do and a chance for her brain to switch off.

Needless to say in the last few weeks she had been doing a _lot_ of cleaning.

The sound of a steady dripping which had been going on steadily since she had walked in was starting to grate on Waverly’s brain. Spinning round she located the source of the noise, one of the beer taps was leaking. With another small huff she reached out to push the tap back into the upright position.

And then it exploded.

Beer went everywhere, drenching the front of Waverly’s shirt and prompting a squeak of surprise to fall from her lips as she tried furiously to shut the tap off.

After what seemed like an age, but was in reality no more than five seconds she managed to wrestle the tap under control and stop the flow of beer. Grabbing a nearby tea cloth she dabbed at the her shirt, nose wrinkling at the strong stench of beer and sighed heavily.

“Perfect.”

“I didn’t know Shorty’s had wet t-shirt competitions.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who could possibly be at the door?? (SPOILERS: it's Nicole) Apologies for making you wait another chapter for Officer Haught, but she is coming and it will be good (hopefully). Let me know what you thought in the comments and kudos always welcome! You can also come and chat to me on tumblr at Rehizle28 (also if anyone knows the password for the Road to Purgatory Wynonna Earp blog fire it over to me in a message because i cannot for the life of me work it out!)
> 
> I hope to have another chapter done as soon as possible but this weekend is really busy with my girlfriend coming to visit and there are some other stories I need to work on. Would you guys prefer longer chapters and longer waits, or shorter chapters and less time between updates? Let me know in the comments. 
> 
> Sorry for the long notes I had a lot to say! Until next time!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry this took almost a week to get up. A very busy weekend and a busy start to the work week meant I haven't had all that much time to write but I really wanted to get something up as soon as possible for you guys because of your wonderful response to the last chapter. I was actually very touched by all the kind comments and all the kudos so thank you so much! And to everyone who provided the password for the Tumblr blog, it was fantastic! If anyone is still looking for it, it's Nicole's cop car number plate! I can't remember it off the top of my head but someone did put it in the comments so it'll be there. This chapter is a bit shorter than I intended but it does introduce Nicole and set some stuff up so the next one should be longer. I'll stop rambling now and let you enjoy the chapter!

“I didn’t know Shorty’s had wet t-shirt competitions.”

Waverly spun round at the sound of an unfamiliar lilting voice behind her.

A woman was leaning against the doorway, half hidden in the early morning shadows, despite this Waverly could see a coy smile being directed her way. The white Stetson hanging from her left hand and the tell-tale black shirt and tan pants identified this woman as member of Purgatory’s finest.

This must be the officer Nedley had sent over.

“I didn’t mean to startle you.” The woman carried on at Waverly’s visible surprise.

“No, no. It’s fine.” Waverly looked around the bar. “I’ve just had a bit of a crazy morning.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” The woman stepped down the stairs and fully into the light and Waverly couldn’t help but notice how beautiful she was.

The woman’s hair was a vibrant red, pulled back into a braid and out of her face, which was thin and angled. The smile that Waverly had seen when she first turned around was back, and she immediately noticed the dimples that appeared as the smile got wider. It was very cute, something Waverly might not have admitted before three weeks ago.

“Do you always enter a crime scene with a joke?” Waverly asked as she dabbed at her sodden top with the towel.

“Only if it helps a pretty girl smile.” The woman replied, causing Waverly to blush and a smile to automatically tug at her lips.

The redhead’s dimples returned with a triumphant grin as she reached the bar, her eyes locked firmly on Waverly placing her hands against the wood, carefully avoiding the drying stains. There was an intensity about the stare that probably should have made her feel uncomfortable, but instead Waverly found that it made her feel oddly warmed. It was as if the other woman was searching for something in Waverly’s eyes.

“Did Nedley send you?” She blurted the question out when she realised that a full minute had passed of them just staring at each other.

“What? Oh yes! You’ve had a burglary?” a flash of confusion passed across the officer’s face but it vanished quickly as she leant back and drew a small notebook from her pocket.

“Yes,” Waverly watched as the woman wrote something at the top of the page before speaking again. “I haven’t seen you around before, are you new?”

The officer looked up and Waverly could have sworn that she saw disappointment in the other woman’s eyes, but it was gone a second later as she extended her hand over the bar.

“Yeah I transferred here a few weeks ago. I’ve been meaning to introduce myself. My name is Nicole. Nicole Haught.” Again her eyes locked with Waverly’s with the same intense stare, searching for something.

As soon as Waverly grasped Nicole’s hand she felt a small jolt that travelled straight up her arm and settled in her chest, right by her heart.  “It’s nice to...to meet you. I’m...” She struggled to form words, not sure what to make of what was happening.

If she had looked up from their joined hands Waverly would have noticed the disappointed look return to Nicole’s eyes, this time tinged with hurt, but once again the office recovered quickly. “Waverly Earp.” She finished Waverly’s bumbled introduction. “You’re quite a popular girl around here.”

“Oh, you know. Small town.” Waverly replied bashfully. “It’s all in the smile and wave really, that and I pour a mean beer.”

“I’m sure you do.” A smile twitched at the corners of Nicole’s lips, eyes connecting with Waverly’s who found herself getting lost in the officer’s eyes, which she was only now just noticing were a beautiful soft brown.

“So, someone really did a number in here.” Waverly was brought back to earth with a jolt at Nicole’s voice, looking up she looked around again at the damage.

“Yeah.”

“Any idea who might want to target the bar?”

“Gus thinks it was teenagers, there’s a few local kids who get bored and cause mischief. Plus, there’s a few bottles missing and no effort to get into the register.”

“Right, so I’ll be sure to be on the look out for a bunch of inebriated teenagers, it should make them easier to catch if they can barely walk.” Nicole looked up and flashed Waverly a smirk as she finished writing. “Any sign of a forced entry?”

“I think the door had been forced open but I didn’t check properly when I came in.”

As they spoke a small gust of wind came through the open door causing Waverly to shiver as well as remind her that she was still stood in a beer soaked shirt.

“God I am sopping wet!” glancing to her left Waverly was thankful to see the spare Shorty’s shirts she left under the bar were still there. “Do you mind just...?” gesturing to her shirt and then her eyes Waverly started to turn.

“Huh? Oh yes! Sure.” Nicole grinned before turning around, once she was sure the officer couldn’t see her Waverly hurriedly tugged the wet material up her torso and over her head.

Until she got stuck. 

“Crap.” The muttered curse was followed by a raised. “Err, officer I’m stuck.” She heard the other woman’s soft chuckle and the tread of her boots on the floor.

“Hang on, I’ve got you.” Nicole’s voice was soft and soothing and then gentle hands were gently prying her trapped shirt out of her hair and over her head. As the material disappeared Waverly was greeted with the full force of the other woman’s gaze.

The atmosphere seemed to change in a second, crackling with a tension that Waverly couldn’t identify, if anything it felt a little exciting.

“It’s a good thing you’re not some guy otherwise this would be really...awkward.” Waverly trailed off as Nicole bobbed her head, dimples flashing again as she licked her lips. Waverly’s eyes followed the motion with a rapt intensity as she was overcome with the strangest feeling, it was almost as if she wanted to kiss...

“WHO WAS IT?!?!”

Spinning around Waverly couldn’t help the shriek that left her mouth, even as Nicole jumped back, right hand going immediately to her hip, fingers curling around the butt of her gun.

Across the bar Wynonna perched on her elbows, a devilish smile on her face, she had somehow managed to sneak into the bar whilst both Waverly and Nicole had been distracted. 

When she had regained the ability to breath and her heart rate had slowed down sufficiently Waverly shot her sister a scowl.

“What the hell Wynonna?!”

“You know I’m only trying to help baby girl. Did it work, did you remember?”

Waverly had finally crumbled and told Wynonna that she couldn’t remember the name or clearly the face of who she slept with. Mostly because for three days the elder Earp had been incessant, asking every single time she saw Waverly.

 Wynonna had quickly come up with a plan to jog her sister’s memory.

Once she had stopped laughing that was.

Her plan consisted mostly (well solely) of shouting ‘WHO WAS IT?!’ as loudly as she could whenever she saw Waverly, hoping the loud noise and being put on the spot would help kick start her memory.

So far it hadn’t worked.

But it had resulted in several smashed glasses.

“No, I haven’t remembered yet!”

“Whoa! What happened here?” Wynonna gazed around the wrecked bar before glancing back at her sister. “I didn’t do this did I?”

“No Wy, you were passed out on the sofa before midnight last night so it definitely wasn’t you.” Waverly huffed as she pulled on her shirt.

“That’s a relief. Why weren’t you wearing a shirt?” Wynonna raised her eyebrows as Waverly tugged the shirt down over her midriff.

“I had an accident with the tap.” Waverly replied, but Wynonna wasn’t listening. Her attention was now on Nicole who was standing watching the sisters a little warily, her hand still poised by her holster.

“Officer Haughtstuff!” Wynonna greeted the officer with a wide grin and a wave.

“You two know each other?” Waverly asked as Nicole returned Wynonna’s grin with an easy smile of her own.

“Yeah Office Haughtstuff here may have helped me out of a....errr... spot of bother last week.”

“What she means to say is that I stepped in and stopped her being arrested for public indecency.” Nicole grinned.

“What did you do this time?”

“It wasn’t my fault!” Wynonna protested. “I really needed to pee and I was too far away from Dol...” She caught herself at Waverly’s inquisitive look and mumbled. “...where I needed to be.”

“I do apologise for my sister.” Waverly looked from her sister to Nicole who was still smiling, her hands now relaxed and resting on her belt.

“No need, just doing my job Miss Earp.” Nicole put on an exaggerated accent and tipped an imaginary hat, despite the fact that her own hat was still perched on the bar, the action causing Waverly to giggle.

“It stinks in here.” Wynonna wrinkled her nose. “So baby girl any more thoughts on who it was?”

Waverly rolled her eyes at her sister’s inability to stick to one topic. “No, I keep telling you.”

“Who was what?” Nicole piped up, a little nervously.

“Well!” Wynonna slapped her hands down on the bar for added effect as she launched into an explanation of what had become her favourite subject the past few weeks.  “Little Waverly here, goody two shoes Waverly, the angel of the family. Well she went out a few weeks ago and slept with someone and now...” Wynonna paused for dramatic effect. “...she can’t remember who they were, no name, no face. Nothing.”

If Waverly hadn’t been so busy glaring at her sister, she might have noticed the slight blanching of Officer Haught’s face and the way her hands clenched tighter at her belt.

“I don’t get why you don’t want to know who it was, you plan everything right down to your toilet breaks and I know it’s killing you that you can’t remember so you can....”

“It’s embarrassing!” Waverly’s outburst cut off Wynonna’s rant and caused Nicole, who looked like she’d been about to speak to close her mouth and purse her lips. “I mean what kind of person does that?! Not to mention I ran away like a coward. No Wynonna please.” Waverly held up a hand to stop the inevitable retort from her sister. “I know you’re trying to help but really I just want to forget it ever happened.”

“Sure thing baby girl.” Wynonna looked a little surprised at Waverly’s response but shot her a reassuring smile.

Nicole cleared her throat and both Earp’s swung round to face the officer who had her notebook out and was frowning slightly. 

“I’m sorry again officer. My sister has never really understood the concept of personal conversations.” Waverly apologised, shooting Wynonna a withering look.

“It’s fine really. She got pretty personal when I stopped her peeing in the street.” Nicole replied, she was smiling again now and Waverly found herself relived to see the frown gone.

“I’ll bet she did.” Waverly shot her sister another look, Wynonna at least this time tried to look contrite.

“Can you think of anyone else who might have wanted to break in?” Nicole asked.

“What about Chump?” Wynonna yawned.

“Who’s Chump?” Nicole frowned.

“Champ the chump.” Wynonna giggled.

“Champ Hardy,” Waverly offered at Nicole’s still confused look. “My ex boyfriend, he can be a bit of a petty boy...man.”

Nicole raised her eyebrows. “A boy-man?” a hint of a smirk pulled her mouth, showing the barest hint of a dimple which made something in Waverly’s stomach flip. “Yep, I’ve been there.” Nicole carried on. “It’s the worst.” The last three words were spoken in a lowered voice and accompanied by a playful wrinkling of her face.

“So do you think this ‘boy-man’ would have trashed the bar?”

“Nah, Champ’s not the destructive kind. He’s the sit and drink himself into a stupor kind.” Waverly chuckled.

It was true, Champ had been in Shorty’s a lot since their break up a few weeks earlier. If Waverly was working most of the time he left her alone, but there was the odd occasion he would try and make conversation. For the most part Waverly ignored him, only answering when absolutely necessary. But there were times, when he started to get particularly whingey that’d she found herself snapping at him.

It was quite cathartic watching him skulk out of the bar with his tail between his legs.

“Waves I need to go, need to see a man about a dog.” The tell tale ‘Dolls’ cough was back and Waverly smirked.

“Tell Dolls I said hi!” She called after her sister as she left the bar.

Wynonna’s middle finger was the only answer she got.

With her sister gone Waverly was once again left alone with Nicole and the youngest Earp immediately felt a return of the tension that had permeated the air before Wynonna had barged in on them. Only this time there was more of an edge to it, an edge that hadn’t been there before.

“Is there any other information you can give me about the break in?” Nicole was all business again.

“Not really, like I said it’s probably teenagers.”

“Yes I think you’re right.” Nicole looked up and gave Waverly a smile, this one didn’t reach her eyes which had lost some of their softness from earlier, giving the officer an almost guarded expression. “Well I think I have everything I need, if you think of anything else Miss Earp just come down to the station and someone will take your statem...”

“I owe you one.” Waverly blurted out suddenly, surprising both herself and Nicole, she didn’t know why she had interrupted the other woman, maybe it was because the officer was clearly getting ready to leave and Waverly didn’t want her to go just yet. “For helping me with my shirt.” She carried on quickly.

“It was my pleasure,” Nicole replied. “It’s what we at the Purgatory Police Department are here for, to help pretty girls out when they get stuck in their own shirts.” There was a teasing lilt to her tone even if once again her eyes weren’t as soft. Waverly blushed a little at her words, had anyone else said something like that she might have rolled her eyes at the forced chessiness, but the words seemed to roll naturally for Nicole.

“But seriously I owe you,”

“Ok, well you can buy me a coffee sometime.” Nicole tucked her notebook back in her pocket and reaching out plucked her hat from the bar. After giving it a cursory check to make sure it was still clean she placed it back on her head, adjusting it carefully.

Walking back around the bar she slid a card across the bar, flashing Waverly another dimpled smile as she did so. “I mean it.”

Then she was gone, leaving Waverly standing at the bar turning the card over in her hands.

Officer Haught indeed.

* * *

 

Over the next few days Waverly found herself playing the whole exchange in the bar with Purgatory’s newest police over in her head.

She couldn’t shake the feeling that she had somehow offended the other woman, although what she had done to do so she didn’t know.

Their conversation had been going so well. Waverly would have even have gone as far to say there was some mild flirtation going on, not that she admitted it that much, it opened a whole can of worms that she was not ready to deal with just yet.

But then something had changed, the flirtation had all but stopped and that guarded look had fallen and try as she might Waverly couldn’t figure out what had triggered it.

Waverly hated even the notion that she might have offended someone, unlike Wynonna she liked people being happy and often went out of her way to be as nice as she could to people. Of course this was often in response to Wynonna being very rude to people and Waverly cleaning up her messes. Her charm and personable character meant people very rarely stayed mad if the youngest Earp was involved.

It was this drive to please that led to Waverly standing outside the sheriff’s office a few days later, two coffees clutched in her hands, mentally preparing herself to go in and speak to the woman who had occupied an inordinate amount of her mind the past few days.

The station was as always was quiet, the towns few officers going about their business in a sedate, slow fashion. The doors to both Nedley and Dolls office were closed, leading Waverly to believe that the two men had had a disagreement earlier in the day.

Nicole was easy to spot; she was the only woman in the room. Sitting at a desk near the back of the room she was pouring over a file, a slight frown creasing her brow. She was so engrossed in what she was doing that she didn’t notice Waverly until the small girl clearer her throat.

“Oh hi.” Nicole looked surprised and Waverly didn’t blame her.

“I thought you might want some coffee.” Waverly held up the cup as proof and watched as Nicole’s eyebrows rose a little higher. “I said I owed you one remember?”

“Yeah, I remember. Thanks.” Nicole gingerly took the proffered cup and cradled it between her hands. A silence descended that carried a decidedly awkward air.

“So how have you...” Nicole started to say even as Waverly began to speak.

“I need to ask you...”

“I’m sorry, you first.” Nicole leant back in her chair and took a sip of her drink.

It took Waverly a minute to collect her thoughts, partly because she wasn’t all that sure what it was she wanted to say, and partly because she’d gotten a little distracted by Nicole’s forearms. The officer had rolled up her sleeves and as she gripped her cup Waverly watched with fascination as the muscles pulled taut.

“Waverly?”

Eyes snapping up Waverly felt her cheeks warm as she caught Nicole smirking at her, one eyebrow cocked in question.

“Sorry, err yes.” Waverly struggled to collect herself, the task made harder as Nicole’s smirk widened, one dimple appearing. “Well, I wanted to ask you if, well...Did I do anything to offend you the other day?”

Nicole’s smirk vanished and was replaced by a look of surprise. “What makes you say that?”

“You just seemed to I don’t know, change a bit. I just got the feeling I’d offended you and if I did I’m really sorry and if you tell me what I did I promise I won’t do it again. I was having a pretty rubbish day so I wasn’t paying attention to what I was doing, so I’m really sorry.”

Waverly knew she was rambling and pulled herself up before she just talked for the rest of the day.

Nicole didn’t seem to know what to do with her face, it kept switching from surprised to pensive and then back to surprised again, her mouth opening and closing a couple of times as if she was having a heavy internal debate about what to say.

Finally, with a heavy sigh that seemed to slump her whole body she looked up and gave Waverly a tired smile.

“No, you didn’t do anything to offend me Waverly. I apologise if I seemed off at all. The pressures of a new town and a new job can sometimes be a little overwhelming.”

“Oh no I totally get that! Well I mean I’ve never moved out of this town, so I don’t know how it feels but it must be so scary and sorry for adding more pressure on you by barging in here, you must think I’m so weird and I’d totally get it if you wanted me to leave and just never speak to you again and...”

“Waverly! Drink your coffee!” Nicole ordered with a chuckle. Waverly complied immediately, wincing as the hot liquid burnt her tongue. 

“Sorry I tend to ramble when I’m nervous, not that you make me nervous. Well you do, but not in a bad way. At least I think it isn’t...”

“Breathe. That’s it.” Nicole placed a hand on her arm and immediately Waverly felt the tension leave her body. 

“Sorry, again. I just wanted to make sure that we’re ok, cos I think you’re really nice and I’d really like to be your...friend.” Waverly found herself hesitating on the last word and she wasn’t sure why.

Nicole licked her lips and took a second to answer. “I’d very much like to be your friend too Waverly Earp.” There was a tinge to her voice that sounded to Waverly almost like regret but the officer’s smile was bright so she let it go, choosing instead to return the smile with as much gusto as she could and covered one of Nicole’s hand with her own.

“I’m very glad to hear that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do we think? I don't plan on having Waverly remain in the dark for too long but we are in for a few chapters of misunderstandings, confused feelings and angst. But there will be some comedy (hopefully intentional and not just laughably bad writing), fluff and drama along the way so stay tuned. Let me know what you think in the comments and leave kudos if you like what you've read! Come chat to me on Tumblr at Rehizle28! Hope to have another chapter up by the weekend. Until next time!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to have this written and up by the weekend, but well, in all honesty, I spent most of it drunk. And nobody wants to read a chapter I've written whilst drunk. Trust me it's not pleasant. Thank you to everyone who commented on the last chapter, I know people want Nicole to tell Waverly and it's a bit shitty if she doesn't but Nicole does have her reasons for not saying anything, not all of them are good reasons but some of them are. But it won't be long before the truth does come out I promise. 
> 
> With that said, enjoy this chapter!

The call came early in the morning.

Waverly had been working the close shift at Shorty’s and had only fallen into bed three hours earlier when her slumber was interrupted by the loud ringing of her phone.

Groaning loudly, she flung her arm out of the covers, not bothering to lift her head from her pillow as she haphazardly slapped at her bedside table until she found the phone.

“Hello.” The greeting came out as a croak and slightly muffled due to her face still being pressed into her pillow.

“Hello Miss Earp, it’s Professor Harrison from the history department.”

Waverly shot up in bed so fast she gave herself a head rush.

“Professor Harrison! It’s so good to hear from you!” Clutching her head, she scrambled to her feet, despite the Professor being unable to see her she felt she should be standing.

“I’m sorry it’s taken us so long to get in contact,” Professor Harrison continued, either ignoring her clearly audible attempts to get out of bed or oblivious to them. “But we had a lot of applicants to consider and a lot of deliberations to make.”

“I completely understand.” Waverly replied. “Am I to assume you have come to a decision?”

“We have.”

Waverly held her breath. This was it.

“I’m delighted to inform you Miss Earp that you have been successful. The fellowship is yours!”

The noise that erupted from Waverly’s mouth at his words was something between a scream and a strangled squeak.

“You mean it? I really got it?!”

“You really got it, and might I say congratulations, your interview and presentation were both sublime. If you’d like to come in later today, we can go through the basics and have you meet the rest of the department.”

“I’ll be there within the hour!” Waverly promised. “Thank you so much!  You have no idea what this means to me.”

“You are very welcome my dear, I look forward to working with you.” Professor Harrison’s voice was warm and Waverly couldn’t help the smile that broke out on her face.

“And I you Professor, I’ll see you later.”

As the line went dead Waverly took a moment to allow the information to sink in.

She’d done it. All the hard work and sleepless nights had paid off. Today was the first day of the rest of her life.

She had to tell Wynonna. 

The eldest Earp was fast asleep, sprawled on her stomach with one leg hanging off the edge of the bed. She looked almost peaceful in her slumber, her face softer and younger. Waverly couldn’t remember the last time she had seen her this way. 

This didn’t stop Waverly from bouncing on her sisters bed as hard as she could. 

“I got it! I got it! I got it!” Waverly chanted, shaking Wynonna’s shoulder.

“Unless ‘it’ is a lifetimes supply of whiskey I don’t want to know.” Wynonna mumbled into her pillow.

“No it’s not that. I got it! My fellowship!”

Wynonna slowly levered herself up onto her elbows, blinking slowly as she tried to focus. “Your fellowship?” She rubbed her eyes and it took a few seconds before Waverly’s words penetrated her sleep induced fog. “Oh my god your fellowship! Well done baby girl!”

Leaning forward Wynonna pulled Waverly into a tight embrace, burying her head in her sister’s shoulder. “I knew you’d get it.”

“Thank you.”

“Seriously Waverly, you worked so hard for this and you deserve it, and much more besides. You’re the best person I know.” It was a rare moment of sincerity and Wynonna’s words caused tears to prick at Waverly’s eyes.

Ever since their parents had died and Willa had left them for Bobo it had always been her and Wynonna. Waverly loved her sister to death, but there were times when she had worried that she was not as high in her sister’s list of priorities as Wynonna was in hers. There always seemed to be something else going on that was more important, then there were the long periods of time that Wynonna had been away, only coming back for sporadic visits now and again.

But it was in moments like this that Waverly knew just how lucky she was to have Wynonna and that she would be completely lost without her sister, and she knew without it having to be said that Wynonna felt the same way.

“We should celebrate soon.” Wynonna was saying, eyes more alert now. “I’m afraid I can’t do tonight I promised I’d work.” She had finally pulled her finger out after months of Gus nagging her and got a job bartending in a biker bar in the next town over. Gus and Shorty had both offered her a job in Purgatory but Wynonna insisted that if she worked, lived and drank in the same town she would go ‘ga-ga’.

“That’s ok.” Waverly smiled brightly. “I’ll call Chrissy; we’ve not been for a drink since the night I...” She pulled herself up short before she broke her own rule.

Don’t think or mention the one-night stand.

“Good, you guys have fun. Now, not that I’m not over the moon at your news but if I don’t get the requisite amount of sleep before work tonight I _will_ end up bottling a biker in the face. “ shooing Waverly off her bed Wynonna flopped back down onto the pillow with a dramatic sigh.

* * *

Chrissy had screamed down the phone when Waverly told her the news, the sheriffs daughter had always been a very excitable girl. 

What had followed was a babbled insistence that they meet for drinks that afternoon to celebrate Waverly’s success, which Waverly had agreed to enthusiastically. She wasn’t due back in work until the next day and relished the chance to let her hair down.

Maybe not quite as much as last time though.

True to her word within the hour Waverly was pulling into the university car park. Professor Harrison was waiting for her at the top of the steps that led up in the building, getting her with a smile he held out his hand for her to shake.

“So glad you could make it Miss Earp, it’s a pleasure to have you here.”

“I’m very happy to be here.” Waverly replied as he led her into the building. “And I can’t wait to get started.”

The morning was a resounding success, Professor Harrison introduced her to what felt like a hundred different people, whose names she had no hope in hell of remembering. She had been shown the library where she would be spending a lot of her time, and had even been gifted a small office where she could work without fear of interruption.

Waverly felt like she was in heaven.

It was as she was leaving the building, after bidding Professor Harrison a fond goodbye, promising she would be back within the week, that she was stopped by a voice drifting out of one of the offices. 

“Well, well, well. Miss Waverly Earp.”

Waverly ducked into the office that voice had come from, the speaker was a man, dressed in old fashioned western clothes, his handlebar moustache twitching in a smile as he swung two boot clad feet off the desk so he could stand up and greet her properly.

“How are you Doc?” Waverly greeted the man with an enthusiastic hug.

“Oh I am just dandy, even more so now I know the whispers I heard in these hallowed halls that the brilliant Waverly Earp was joining our ranks have indeed come to fruition.”

“You’re such a charmer.” Waverly slapped his arm playfully.

“I am a gentleman; it is a requisite that we are charming.” The older man replied, tipping the hat that sat on his head back before gesturing for her to take a seat. “Now tell me, how is that delightful sister of yours?”

“She’s doing pretty well actually, working now which I think has lowered Gus’ blood pressure levels considerably”

“I am sure it has.” Doc chucked, linking his fingers over his stomach. “She did happen to mention the last time we conversed that you are expecting a somewhat...unwelcome guest soon.”

“Yes, we are.” Waverly’s smile dropped at the thought of her elder sister. “What did Wynonna say about it?”

“Oh you know Wynonna,” Doc replied. “She has a lot to say about a lot of things but when it comes to things of importance, why, your sister hides behind that wall of hers.” He fixed Waverly with a concerned look. “How do you feel about it?”

Waverly shrugged. “I don’t want to cause any trouble, I know that Wy and Willa still speak on occasion. I don’t want Wynonna to stop speaking to her because of me, she already gave up going to the wedding.”

“Hey now, you sister did not give up anything that she couldn’t do without. Her decision not to go to Willa’s wedding was something she decided to do because it was for the best. I have always maintained that the less contact had with one Bobo Del Rey, the better.” Doc leant forward, his dark eyes boring into hers. “You have nothing to feel bad about my dear, and you shouldn’t let this visit distract you from the path you have set yourself on. I mean, you are starting the most glorious adventure.”

“I have?”

Doc leant back and spread his arms wide. “Why yes Miss Earp, the pursuit of academic knowledge is the most wonderful of adventures and fulfils the soul in a way that nothing else can. To be surrounded by history but not understand it is, in my humble opinion, the greatest tragedy in the world. You have chosen to follow the path of fulfilment and that in my book is definitely something worth celebrating.”

Waverly couldn’t help but smile, all feelings of inadequacy, that often returned at mention of Willa, banished by Doc’s peculiar but heart-warming way of speaking.

“You know something Doc? You’re good for Wynonna, really good.”

“You are too kind Miss Earp.” Doc bowed his head to the compliment. “You and I both know that Wynonna isn’t one to be tied down, and trying to make her so is as futile as trying to the catch the wind.” He gave a small chuckle. “Nor would I have her any other way.”

“Neither would I.” Waverly agreed. “I have to get going but I’m sure I’ll see you in Shorty’s soon?”

“That is something you can most definitely count on.” Doc tipped his hat in farewell before picking up the dusty book he had been reading before Waverly came in.

* * *

There was really only one place to drink in Purgatory, and as much as Waverly loathed having to be in Shorty’s on her day off that was where she ended up with Chrissy later that afternoon.

“Here’s to you Waverly.” Chrissy raised her glass of wine. “You’ve worked so hard the last few months and you really, really deserve this!”

“Thank you.” Waverly clinked her glass against Chrissy’s and took a sip, her eyes instinctively roaming around the bar as she did so. It was pretty quiet, but that was to be expected for a midweek afternoon, it would pick up later that evening. For now, the only occupants of the bar were a couple of older men playing cards, herself and Chrissy and Gus sat behind the bar reading a book that looked suspiciously like _Fifty Shades of Grey_.

“Did you never think about applying for a fellowship away from here, in a big city somewhere?”

It was a question that many, including Wynonna and Gus had asked her, and one that Waverly knew made sense. Purgatory was small, and her career prospects, especially in academia were slim at best. But although she knew that ultimately she would not spend her entire life in the same small town, like many would, Waverly didn’t think that the time to leave was now.

“I did think about it, but the focus of my study is better suited here and I didn’t think it was right to leave just yet.” She replied, one finger tracing the rim of her glass delicately.

“You weren’t waiting around for Champ were you?” Waverly snorted at Chrissy’s next question.

“God no!” she scoffed. “I’m done waiting for Champ to be anything other than Champ, and I knew we were never going to stay together forever, he was just…”

“A way to fill the time.” Chrissy interrupted with a smirk.

“Something like that.” Waverly chuckled. “I’m just glad I finished it for good.”

“So am I! He definitely wasn’t good enough Waverly.”

“I know, but he was mostly harmless you know. A bit dim, a severe case of wandering eyes, and hands come to think of it, but he was harmless. He was safe.”

“Ahhh I get you honey.” Chrissy shook her head. “Safe’s about all you’re going to get in this damn town.” Waverly nodded her agreement and downed her wine, pouring herself another generous glass.

“So have you remembered anymore about your mystery one-night stand?”

“Chrissy!” Waverly whined. “You’re as bad as Wynonna.” She had reluctantly told her best friend about the night after Wynonna had tried one of her jump scares in front of her. Chrissy had been a little less relentless than her sister but had still brought it up more than Waverly would have liked.

“Oh come on Waverly! You’ve never been this secretive.”

“It’s because I don’t remember!” Waverly protested wildly.

“Well don’t you want to remember?”

Waverly hesitated. “I don’t know.” She finally admitted.

“Well why not? From what you do remember you said it was a pretty special night, why wouldn’t you want to find him again?”

Waverly hesitated again, weighing up whether or not she should admit the true gender of her one-night stand. On the one hand it would be a massive relief to get it off her chest and talk to someone other than herself about it, but on the other hand admitting it out loud to another human would force her to face the questions she had been hiding and try and provide answers that she didn’t have.

“They were phenomenal.” She conceded, thankful once again for gender neutral pronouns. “But I’d just broken up with Champ the day before, I wasn’t planning on doing anything with anyone!”

“Sometimes the best things in life are complete surprises.” Chrissy replied wisely, causing Waverly to roll her eyes.

“Besides I ran away like a coward, so it’s irrelevant because even if I wanted to find them I couldn’t and how would I explain just running away.”

“The truth?” Chrissy offered around a sip of wine.

“Yes and it would me seem completely unhinged.” Waverly countered. “No, there’s so much going on in my life right now with the fellowship and work. I don’t have time for romance, so whilst it was _fantastic._ ” She couldn’t help bit stress the word. “But I think maybe I just need to chalk it up to one of life’s bizarre experiences and move on, forget about it.”

“Hmmm.” Chrissy didn’t look convinced and appeared like she had more to say on the matter. 

In an attempt to defect her friend’s attention Waverly looked around for anything she could change the topic of conversation to. As luck would have it one of the sheriff’s deputies had just wandered into the bar, seeing the uniform sparked the remembrance of an encounter and gave Waverly the change in topic she needed.

“So I met your dad’s new deputy the other week.”

“Oh, Nicole?”

“Yeah, do you know much about her?” Waverly pressed on, keen to keep Chrissy distracted. 

“Not all that much, dads had her over for dinner a couple of times, you know to help her get settled. She seems very nice, very polite. How did you meet her?”

“She was the one who answered the burglary call here.” Waverly replied. As Gus had thought the local teenagers had been to blame, three of them had broken in together and stolen a bottle of vodka and several of whiskey.

They had been found on the outskirts of one of the farms puking their guts up. Apparently Nicole had stopped by the bar to inform Gus on one of Waverly’s rare days off.

She had found herself quite disappointed that she hadn’t been around to see the redhead again.

“She’s very nice, what did you think? Dad was a bit sceptical about having a woman on his force. Not because she wasn’t up to the job!” Chrissy quickly carried on at Waverly’s slight frown. “But you know how some of the people in this town are, they can be downright backwards at times, he was worried how she’d fit in. But she surprised everyone.”

“That doesn’t surprise me, she had an almost.... effortless charm when she came in here.” Waverly could feel a slight blush pinking her cheeks as she recalled the subtle flirtation that had occurred between her and the officer and the way Nicole had looked at her, as if in that moment she was the most interesting thing in the world and deserved her full attention.

“Wow, someone got a little girl crush there Waverly?”

“What? No! She was just nice is all!” Chrissy smirked at Waverly’s spluttered response.

“It’s the uniform isn’t it? I’ll admit she wears it well, better than most of the men.”

“Sounds like someone else has the girl crush not me.” Waverly grunted. 

“Hey I’m always open to trying new things.” Chrissy replied immediately with a wink, and Waverly was surprised by the hot flash of jealously that momentarily coursed through her stomach at the thought of Chrissy and Nicole. The feeling was gone a moment later as Chrissy laughed. 

“You never thought about experimenting?”

The memories that hit Waverly full force of her ‘experimenting’ stunned her into silence for a moment she passed it off with a shrug. “I’ve not really ever given it any thought.”

A barefaced lie.

Thankfully the talk moved away from experimenting and to safer territory, Chrissy wanted to know more about the fellowship and Waverly was happy to grant her request, eagerly launching into an explanation of all the books and reports she wanted to read, all the secrets she was hoping to discover.

When she left the bar a couple of hours later Waverly was feeling a pleasant buzz, the type of buzz that only comes from spending time with a close friend, well, the generous few glasses of wine had helped as well.

This pleasant buzz disappeared immediately when she bumped into Champ.

Literally.

He’d been looking down at his phone, eyes fixed on the screen, blind to all around him and as he stumbled back Waverly got a look at what had him so engrossed.

Of course it was a half-naked woman.

“Waverly!” his face split into a grin, a grin that six months ok she might have fallen for, but now only caused a frown to crease between her eyebrows. “I’ve been calling you.”

“Yes, I’ve not been picking up deliberately Champ. It’s what happens after a break up, you stop speaking.”

“Oh come one Waverly, how long are you going to keep punishing me?” Champ whined, his lower lip protruding in a pout. “I said I was sorry, can’t we just forget about it.”

“Champ, this isn’t about punishing you, although you do deserve it. We are not getting back together, it’s over, accept it.” Waverly made to move past him but he blocked her causing her to huff exasperatedly.

“I can change Waverly I promise, I won’t kiss any other girls I promise.” He pleaded, hands coming out and grasping her forearms.

Waverly’s usually docile nature was dimmed by the wine and Champ’s insistence at being in her personal space wasn’t helping, with another frustrated huff she pried his arms loose and gave him a small push.

“I don’t want to be with you Champ, how many times do I have to say it?!” Champ’s pout was back, it made him look like an overgrown five-year-old.

“Waverly!”

“I’m done here.” Waverly threw her hands up in exasperation. “Do _not_ call me.” Her words were punctuated by a sharp jab to his chest with her index finger that had him yelping in pain as she stomped off.

She knew this wasn’t the last time he would harass her, Champ Hardy was a little too persistent at times, but she hoped she would at least have some respite from him for at least a little while.

Unbeknownst to Waverly and Champ, their exchange had been observed from the opposite side of the road by a redheaded officer, out on her patrol, ready to step in at a moment’s notice if it looked like Waverly needed help.

As the encounter unfolded and it became obvious the last thing Waverly needed was help a smile stretched the officer’s face before she drove away.

* * *

Shorty’s on a Friday night was Waverly’s least favourite night, it seemed that the end of the working week turned people into morons, all eager to drink themselves into an early grave.

Normally she would have taken the rowdiness in her stride, but her mood was still sour after her encounter with Champ the day before, and another nagging feeling that she couldn’t quite identify.

There was something about this particular night that set her on edge, there was a tension in the air, the uneasy promise that something was going to kick off.

Bar fights were not uncommon in Shorty’s, raging testosterone and alcohol were not a good mix. There were also several gangs that operated in the surrounding areas and sometimes their conflicts spilled into the bar. But usually they were minor and could be broken up by a harsh bark from Gus or one look at Waverly’s shotgun.

Tonight’s fight however when it broke out was bigger than anything Waverly or Gus had seen in years. The event that triggered it was unknown, the bar had been rowdy but no rowdier than usual, but in the blink of an eye all hell had broken loose. Chairs were upended, glasses dropped and the sound of heavy punches rose above the juke box that was still cranking out loud, old country music like some demented soundtrack to a bad western.

Waverly could only stand behind the bar and gape as no fewer than seven of the patrons started fighting, a quick glance to her left showed her Gus watching the fight as well, her lips pulled into a hard line and a phone pressed to her ear. Neither made any attempt to weigh in and stop the fists flying, with that many it would be stupid.

The response from the Sheriff’s department was quick, within a few minutes the flashing lights and sirens screeched to a halt outside the window, the door crashed open and several deputies strode into the room.

The first one in was Nicole.

Her face was set in grim determination, one hand wrapped tentatively around her holster, the other helping to push her way through the crowd. Most people parted upon seeing the uniform, the ones that didn’t were mostly involved in the fighting, oblivious to anything but the flying fists.

“Alright now let’s break it up!” Nicole’s tone was authoritative and strong and Waverly couldn’t believe the change from the smiling woman who’d teased her in Shorty’s a week before.

It was quite a turn on.

One or two of the men stilled their movements at the sound of Nicole’s voice, moving away quickly as she turned a steely glare on them. Along with her colleague the redhead made a beeline for the few bodies still locked together in the middle of the floor.

“Come on guys enough!” reaching forward Nicole grabbed one of the men by the scruff of his jacket and hauled him backwards, deftly moving her head out of the way flailing arms. “Calm. Down!” She grunted with the effort of keeping him still and with great difficult transferred him to one of the other officers who was waiting with a pair of handcuffs.

It appeared that one of the drunken bystanders didn’t take kindly to his friend being hauled off in handcuffs, with a bellow he launched himself towards Nicole.

“Look out!” Waverly heard the words leave before she could stop them. Nicole’s head snapped around at the sound of her voice, her eyes narrowing in confusion as she took in Waverly’s wide eyes.

The man slammed into Nicole from the side, sending her stumbling backwards, she regained her balance just in time to twitch her head out of the path of an incoming fist.

“Sir, you’re already in enough trouble. I would urge you not to do anything further that will land you in even more...” whatever Nicole had been about to say was cut off abruptly as the drunk swung his fist towards her head again, her duck this time was a little slow and Waverly winced, a half gasp leaving her lips as the man’s fist connected squarely with Nicole’s cheek.

The officer’s head snapped back, her body following the momentum of the swing, clattering painfully into one of the few upright tables left. The man who had hit her, who Waverly could now identify as Carl, seemed genuinely surprised that his punch had landed and for a moment he stood quite still. This moment was all Nicole needed to stagger back to her feet and cross the distance between them. Carl swung another punch, wide and miscalculated, which Nicole ducked under easily before delivering a punch of her own that had Carl sprawled out on the floor within a matter of seconds.

_God that was hot. Someone punching someone else should NOT look that good!_

The thought crossed Waverly’s mind before she could stop it and she shook her head in surprise.

_Where did that come from?_

“That was a mistake.” Nicole’s voice brought Waverly back to earth, eyes returning to the scene to see Nicole snapping a pair of handcuffs onto Carl’s wrists. “A big fucking mistake.”

Nicole glanced up, her eyes locking with Waverly’s, there was something in the officer’s eyes, a fire, that made Waverly’s breath hitch. Her own eyes she was sure had darkened and it was probably written all over her face what she was thinking.

_Do something with your face you idiot!_

Forcing herself to close her mouth Waverly tore her eyes away from Nicole’s, with some difficulty. When she looked back again Nicole was on her feet, passing a groaning Carl into the hands of the other officer’s and dabbing her cheek with one hand.

Her heavily bleeding cheek.

“Oh my goodness!” Waverly scrambled around the bar, pushing aside the people who were being ushered out by the other police until she was next to Nicole, who was now using a napkin to staunch the heavy flow of blood. “Are you ok?”

“I’m fine.” Nicole muttered, removing the napkin her eyes sparked in concern as she noticed the amount of blood staining the paper. Carl must have been wearing a ring because his punch had opened up a gash that ran right along Nicole’s left cheekbone.

“Stupid Carl.” Waverly grumbled swiping another napkin up off the nearest table and gently pressing it against the taller woman’s face. She heard Nicole’s sharp intake of breath and assumed it was because of the pain. “Sorry.” Looking up she found the redhead watching her, an unfathomable look in her eyes, Waverly could have sworn she saw guilt swirling in the brown irises.

Suddenly Nicole was pulling away. “I should get going, this is gonna be a lot of paperwork.” Without so much as a goodbye she walked away, leaving Waverly holding a blood stained tissue, and feeling very confused.

_What the hell was that all about?!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I personally loved the scene in episode 12 where Nicole smacked Champ and I decided I wanted more of that in this story, hence the bar fight. Let me know what you thought in the comments, kudos if you liked and as always feel free to come and talk to me on Tumblr Rehizle28. I would like to have another chapter up by the beginning of next week but it's likely to be same time next week.
> 
> Until next time!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Had this written sooner than I expected, thanks once again for the response to the last chapter, it makes my day reading the comments from you guys so please do keep them coming! Short note from me this time (shocker), enjoy the chapter!

The bar fight was the talk of the town for the next few days, not much happened in their small corner of the world so every minor event was greeted with much excitement and conversation. Sure, the townsfolk had the continued exploits of Wynonna Earp to keep them entertained but even these were eclipsed by a police officer getting punched, not only that but the new _female_ police officer getting punched, and to cap it all off, she punched _back_.

 Everywhere Waverly went it seemed the next couple of days she heard Nicole’s name, the respect for the sheriff’s deputy had sky rocketed, with even the more sceptical of Purgatory’s residents now fully brought around to having a woman on the force. The fact that her assailant had been Carl, or ‘stupid Carl’ as most of the town had dubbed him for many years only helped the situation. Carl was part of one of the gangs that operated in Purgatory and the surrounding towns, causing massive amounts of nuisance. It was cathartic for a lot of people to hear about him getting sucker punched.

Waverly too was thinking a lot about the event, but her thoughts were more centred on the aftermath of the fight, on her interaction with Nicole. As much as she thought about it she could still not come up with a possible explanation for the officer’s behaviour.

_Why did she run away?_

It was the second time Waverly was left feeling confused about an encounter with Nicole, wondering what it was she might have done to prompt the other woman’s reaction. Sure she had mumbled something about paperwork, but the way she had moved away and the look in her eyes had Waverly convinced that there was something else going on.

Now if only she could figure out what it was.

Waverly had kept an eye out for Nicole, hoping to get to the bottom of what had happened, but for three days she saw no sign of her. It was if the officer had stopped off the face of the earth.

When she did eventually see Nicole again she wasn’t even looking for her. Waverly was so engrossed in her own thoughts (for the first time in three days _not_ about Nicole) and planning the start of her fellowship, which would commence the next day, that she didn’t see Nicole until she walked into her.

It was very reminiscent of her last encounter with Champ.

“Ooff.” Nicole grunted as Waverly collided with her chest.

“Oh my god I am so sorry” Waverly jumped back quickly, shooting Nicole an apologetic look as the taller woman pressed a hand to her stomach where Waverly’s elbow had collided with her.

“It’s fine.” Nicole’s voice came out a little higher than usual as she tried to get oxygen back into her lungs.

Once Nicole was able to breathe properly again Waverly was able to get a good look at her. The cut on her cheek had turned an angry red splitting the left side of her face in half, four stitches keeping the skin together. Purple brushing ringed the gash, extending up to just below the redhead’s eye.

“That looks nasty.” Waverly commented. Nicole raised a hand to brush against her face, Waverly noticed the knuckles were bruised and purple as well.

“Yeah, who knew stupid Carl could punch so hard?”

“You punch harder.” Nicole’s lips twitched at Waverly’s reply. “I’ve been looking for you.” The smaller woman’s next words caused Nicole’s smile drop and she shifted uncomfortably on her feet.

“Yeah, I should apologise for the way I left the other day, it was very rude of me and I didn’t even thank you for your help.”

“My help?” Waverly frowned in confusion.

“You tried to warn me.”

“I distracted you, that’s what led to you getting hurt!” without thinking about what she was doing Waverly’s hand came up to brush the softest of touches against the officer’s marred skin. Nicole’s eyes closed briefly at the motion and she inhaled softly, exhaling a little shakily a moment later.

“You were not to blame.” Her voice was low and soft. “And I behaved badly afterwards, it’s just I need to...” trailing off Nicole frowned hard in concentration as if she was searching for words that wouldn’t come.

“You need to what?” Waverly pressed.

“I need you to let me buy you a drink to make up for my terrible behaviour.” Waverly got the distinct feeling that the invitation was not what Nicole had wanted to say but she made no comment on it. Instead she smiled brightly and nodded enthusiastically.

“I can let you do that.”

The short walk to Shorty’s was spent in silence, Nicole breaking away to head to the bar once they got inside as Waverly found them a table. Tapping her fingers on the table Waverly couldn’t help but watch as Nicole leant against the bar, hat dangling loosely from her hand, a smile stretching her lips as she spoke to Shorty. Waverly giggled when Nicole’s attempt to pay for the drinks was waved away by the barman, she could have sworn the redhead pouted.

“Well I didn’t exactly buy you this drink but I hope you’ll still accept it as my apology.” Nicole carefully placed their drinks on the table before taking a seat opposite Waverly, resting her hat on the table.

“I definitely do accept it.” Waverly grinned before cocking an eyebrow as Nicole lifted her beer to take a sip. “Why Officer Haught? Are you drinking on duty?!”

“I thought it was the prerogative of all small town police to drink on duty?” Nicole smirked. “But no ma’am, my shift finished five minutes before you tried to knock me over so I am off duty, and a little bruised.”

“That was an accident.” Waverly protested. “Besides your face is already bruised, I didn’t want your body to feel left out.”

“There are much better ways to do that.” The words were spoken so softly that Waverly was almost sure she hadn’t heard them. Looking up from her glass she noticed the tilt of Nicole’s eyebrow and the quirk of her lips as they lifted in a sly smirk.

“How do you mean?” Waverly decided to play dumb, mostly because the idea that they might be flirting again caused her throat to threaten to close and any witty remark pushed down.

“Never mind.” Nicole shook her head, the flirtatious smile replaced by a more cautious one.

For a few moments they sat and sipped their drinks in silence, every so often their eyes would meet briefly before one or both looked away bashfully.

“So how are you enjoying Purgatory?” Waverly was, predictably, the first to break the silence.

“It’s...different.” Nicole replied after a moment of thought. “Not at all what I expected.”

“What had you expected?”

“Honestly? I have no idea.” Nicole chuckled and Waverly was struck by how nice the sound was. “When I heard I was being posted in a small town out in the middle of nowhere I’ll admit I wasn’t the most excited, but this place has a certain...charm to it. I think I’m starting to learn everyone’s names!”

“I’ll have to give you a pop quiz sometime.”

“Maybe you will.”

Waverly didn’t think she’d ever get used to the way Nicole looked at her, nobody had ever looked at her so intently, with such focus, but at the same time with a tenderness that sent a warm feeling to her stomach and her heart to beat that little bit faster.

“Did you grow up in a big city then?” Leaning forward in her chair she propped her chin up on one hand, the other hand resting gently over her glass.  

“Chicago.” Nicole nodded.

“Wow, big change then.”

“Very big,” Nicole agreed. “But then, I’ve always liked challenges.” She levelled Waverly with a look that caused the odd pull low in her stomach she had experienced the first time they’d met.

“So have I.” She managed to reply in what she hoped was a semi confident tone.

“So what do you do that challenges you?” Nicole mirrored her position and leant forward.

“I’m starting a history research fellowship at the university tomorrow actually.”

“Wow! That sounds really interesting, what’s your area of study?” Nicole leant a little further forward, tucking her elbows to the edge of the table. Waverly hesitated before she answered, Nicole’s eyes were bright and her expression eager but she wasn’t used to people being interested in her studies. Wynonna tried to be, but her sister didn’t have the patience or attention span to allow Waverly to explain it in any great detail. Whenever she had brought it up with Champ he had pretended to be interested long enough to stick his tongue down her throat and her hand down his pants.

Though intelligent conversation had never been a factor of their relationship.

“Well, I mean I don’t know how much you know about the area?”

“Not a damn thing.” Nicole replied cheerfully. “Except that this is ‘Wyatt Earp country’”

“Yes that’s part of my research, as you’ve probably guessed from my last name I’m related to Wyatt Earp, he was my great, great granddad.”

“I was thinking it was either that or your family had a _very_ odd obsession with him.” Nicole grinned.

“Very funny. Anyway Purgatory is in an area that’s known as the Ghost River Triangle, it stretches way out from here and encompasses a lot of the surrounding area. So there’s a lot of myths and stories about the area, supernatural goings on and all that kind of thing. It’s become quite famous, there’s even stories that Wyatt wasn’t killing outlaws, he was killing demons.”

“Demons?” Nicole’s eyebrows raised. “Like actually creatures from hell?”

“So the legends go. There’s all these different stories and myths but there’s not much written work on practical reasons for the stories. That’s what I want to research.”

“Tell me more.” The three words were spoken with more sincerity than Waverly had heard from anyone ever about her work, and without thinking about it she plunged in.

For the next hour Waverly talked about her fellowship, longer than she ever had before to someone who wasn’t an academic, the words just seemed to keep coming. And for the entire time Nicole watched, Nicole listened, she looked interested. A smile playing on her lips whenever Waverly got particularly animated about an aspect she was looking to explore.

“God I must be boring you stupid right now!” Waverly said when she realised Nicole hadn’t said anything in well over 40 minutes.

“You’re definitely not boring me.”

“Then why are you looking at me like that?”

Nicole leant back in her seat and grinned, both dimples appearing, a sight that Waverly was starting to enjoy more and more. “You just look so...fulfilled whilst you’re talking. Your whole face just comes alight and it’s...” Nicole paused before she spoke again. “...It’s beautiful.”

The blush that tinged Waverly’s cheeks instantly at Nicole’s words is fierce, she can practically feel the heat rising from her face.

“Thank you.” She managed to whisper. “Nobody else seems to think it’s all that interesting.”

“Then everyone else is stupid.” Nicole stated boldly.

Before Waverly could come up with a response they were interrupted by Shorty placing another two drinks in front of them.

“I saw you girls were running a little empty so thought I’d bring you a refill.”

“Thank you Shorty, you must let me pay for these ones.” The hand reaching Nicole’s wallet was stopped by a gentle pressure from Shorty.

“No way, the hero of my bar doesn’t pay. Well at least not for today.” Turning to Waverly he threw her a playful wink. “I can’t afford to let an Earp drink for free for too long, I’d be out of business within a week.”

“Only if that Earp was Wynonna.” Waverly replied.

“After the amount you drank last year at Wynonna’s birthday I wouldn’t be too sure of that, it was quite a spectacle. The dancing and singing especially was very...”

“Thank you for the drinks Shorty!” Waverly hastily cut the older man off before he spilled the details of a very embarrassing karaoke session the previous year. The memories of it still haunted her to this day.

Shorty walked away chuckling as Nicole cast a questioning look Waverly’s way. “I feel there’s a good story there?”

“No it quite boring really. Nothing interesting and definitely not worth repeating. Say have you met Dolls yet?” Waverly was keen to move the subject onwards.

Her wild stab in the dark had worked, at the mention of Dolls’ name Nicole nodded. “Only a couple of times, he seems to spend most of his time locked away in that office of his. I don’t think he and Nedley get along very well.”

“No they don’t.” Waverly chuckled.

“I can’t figure out what his deal it, what is he doing here in Purgatory? I saw his badge once and it looks like Special Ops.”

“I don’t know all that much about him either. He…hangs out with my sister on occasion.” Waverly supressed her smile at her sister’s continued insistence that nothing was happening between her and Dolls. “He’s here on special assignment is about as much as I know. He’s not a big talker.”

“I definitely got that impression, whoever he is he’s pretty important. According to Nedley he takes a lot of cases off our hands.”

“I can imagine Nedley is thrilled about that.”

“Oh he loves it.” Nicole laughed. “It’s his favourite part of the day when he has to hand over his cases to a government official who won’t tell him what he’s doing with them.”

An easy silence fell over the two and Waverly couldn’t help but marvel at how easy being in Nicole’s company was, silence was not something that she came across very often. Wynonna like to fill every waking second with words, it didn’t matter what they were her older sister loved to talk, Chrissy was the same, and Champ, well, Champ loved talking himself, and when there was silence he figured that that could be filled with sloppy kisses, and other things.

With Nicole there was no pressure to talk, and Waverly felt a smile breaking out.

“What?”

“Nothing, it’s weird, we’ve only met a couple of times but I feel like I know you. Do you know what I mean? It’s like there’s a connection here.”

The uncomfortable look that Waverly had seen after the fight immediately returned to Nicole’s face, the dimples disappeared, her eyes dropped down to stare at the bottom of her glass.

“Waverly…” the officer sighed heavily. “…there’s something I need to…”

“Have you heard the good news?”

Whatever Nicole was about to say was cut off by an oily voice from behind her. Both women looked up to see Carl standing a few feet away, a large bruise, similar to Nicole’s stretched up the left hand side of his jaw.

“What are you talking about Carl?”

Carl grinned and swaggered forward until he was next to their table. “You know, the news about Bobo.”

Waverly’s eyebrows knitted together and a scowl darkened her face. “Yes, I knew he was coming. What are you doing here Carl shouldn’t you be in jail right now?”

“Got bailed out.” Carl turned his grin on Nicole. “I have some good friend’s; they take care of me.”

“Don’t worry Carl, we’ll get you.” Nicole’s tone was cold and hard. Carl’s grin faltered a little under her stare before he looked back to Waverly.

“It’ll be good to have him back. We’ve all missed him.” Carl laughed. “I know he’ll be glad to see you again.” Waverly flinched at the leer in his voice, out of the corner of her eye she saw Nicole glance her way, concern splashed all over her face.

“Oy! I told you! You’re barred from here!” Shorty’s voice rang out from behind the bar. Carl glanced over his shoulder before moving away from the table.

“I’ll be seeing you around Waverly. And you Officer, I’ll be seeing you real soon.”

“Stupid Carl.” Nicole muttered as he disappeared through the door. Turning her attention back to Waverly the concern re-entered her eyes as she took in panicked look in Waverly’s eyes. “Waverly are you ok?”

“What? Yes, I’m fine.” Waverly mumbled.

“Who’s Bobo?”

“He’s ahh…he’s my sister’s…I’m sorry but I have to go.” Waverly slipped out of her seat and grabbed her bag. “Thanks for the drinks…I’m sorry.” With a pained smile she hurried away, leaving Nicole sat alone at the table.

* * *

The first day of her fellowship should have been an exciting day for Waverly, and whilst she had a nervous knot of energy sitting low in her stomach, and a smile on her face as she pulled her jeep into the parking lot of the history department her mood had been dampened by Carl. As she climbed the steps to the building, she resolved not to allow stupid Carl to spoil her day.

The next couple of hours passed by rapidly and before she knew it Professor Harrison was bidding her good luck with a smile and leaving her alone in her small office.

For a moment Waverly couldn’t believe she’d actually done it, ever since the phone call telling her she’d got the fellowship there had been a small part of her that had thought that it was all just a dream, a beautiful, crazy dream. Even now as she sat there she fought the urge to pinch herself, to prove it was real, to prove she had done it.

Waverly had spent a lot of time growing up believing she wasn’t good enough. Being the youngest, quieter Earp, especially with sister’s like Willa and Wynonna, both so proud, so confident, so sure of who they were had meant it was difficult to Waverly to stand out. She knew Wynonna loved her, and she knew that in her own way Willa did too, but the eldest Earp had never taken kindly to having two younger sisters, the age gap between her and Wynonna was just small enough that it wasn’t much of an issue. But Waverly had come long enough after that in Willa’s mind that most of the time she was considered nothing more than a nuisance, someone to look after when her parents were busy.

Waverly knew she was smart, she knew she was the smartest person in her family, Wynonna was street smart, Willa was cunning, but Waverly was smart, smart. Ask her the years Cleopatra had ruled and she’d have the answer before the question had even been finished asked, ask for the translation of something into a foreign dead language and it’d be done in a heartbeat, with her own distinct twist that usually contained a variation of the phrase ‘amaze-balls’.

Unfortunately, being smart had made her a target for bullies, kids at school who hadn’t liked the praise heaped on the girl who raised her hand in class to answer all the questions. Among these bullies, at home at least, was Willa, who took every opportunity whenever their parents weren’t looking and Wynonna wasn’t around to belittle Waverly. Because of this Waverly had often hidden her intelligence, done whatever it took to fit in with everyone, focusing on her charm.

Even when she was older and she embraced her intelligence a bit more she was still made to feel inadequate. Dating Champ she’d had to deal with snide jabs about her brain, comparing it with her physical appearance in wonderment ‘how can someone so pretty be so smart’.

Champ had always been an idiot.

This research fellowship was, to Waverly a way of reclaiming her identity, reclaiming the part of herself that had been pushed to one side all of these years.

She hated that one incident could almost throw that off.

Ever since Wynonna had broken the news that Willa was coming back, Waverly had been trying to put it to the back of her mind, knowing that if she allowed herself to dwell on it for too long she would undo what she had been working so hard to rebuild.

The encounter with Carl the day before had thrown her several steps backwards, she hated that after all these years the memories of Bobo and Willa’s taunting was enough to make her regress to the small, timid girl she had been.

As she began her work, sorting through the books and papers that Professor Harrison had kindly sourced for her, Waverly found her mind wandering, back to her childhood, back to all the time’s she was made to feel small, insignificant, and weak.

There was one incident in particular that had always stuck in her mind, one that never failed to make her heart drop in her chest whenever she thought about.

_“Hello Waverly.”_

_Looking up she sees Bobo, her sisters friend crouching down in the grass next to her._

_“Hi Bobo.” She greets him with a smile, the same smile she gives everyone._

_“What are you doing out here all by yourself?”_

_“I’m digging.” She indicates the hole in front of her._

_“What are you digging for?”_

_“Artefacts.” She replies proudly. It’s a new word she learnt that week from one of her books, and had been waiting eagerly all week to get out into the grounds of the homestead and see if there was anything buried that she could discover._

_“Is that so?” Bobo reaches out and runs his fingers through the dirt she has already displaced, tracing patterns into the ground he smiles at her, even at six she can see that it’s not the same kind of smile that she gives people, only one side of his mouth moves and it’s like he’s smiling at a joke, but he didn’t tell her any joke._

_“Do you like buried things Waverly?”_

_“Yes.” She nods eagerly._

_“Do you like secrets, do you like knowing things that people wanted to hide?”_

_“I guess so.” She doesn’t quite understand the question, but recently she’s been taught about lost cities, artefacts and things that have been gone a long time._

_“Do you want me to tell you a secret?” Bobo’s voice is soft as he continues to draw patterns in the dirt._

_“Yes.” His smile grows at her response and he sits down fully on the ground next to her, leaning close to speak._

_“Good. Now, tell me what’s your last name?”_

_“Earp.” She frowns at his question. “You know that Bobo, I’m an Earp, like Willa and Wynonna.”_

_“Well Waverly, that’s the secret. See…” Bobo’s voice drops even further. “…you’re not an Earp.”_

_“What do you mean?”_

_“I mean; you are not your daddy’s daughter. You…” he reached out and pressed the tip of his index finger against her shoulder. “…are the product of a dirty affair your whore mother had.”_

_She doesn’t know what the word affair or whore means, but the other words make sense._

_“My daddy…”_

_“That’s right. Isn’t your daddy.” Bobo is still smiling. “It’s a good secret isn’t it?”_

_She doesn’t say anything, but she can feel the tears threatening to spill down her cheeks. This isn’t the first time Bobo has been mean to her, the older boy will often be there when Willa is being mean. More often than not standing in the background, smiling the smile he’s giving her right now._

_Scrambling to her feet she moves away from him, he makes no move to follow her. Just stays sitting on the ground, fingers still tracing through the dirt in an absentminded fashion._

_“WYNONNA!”_

Shaking her head Waverly tried to push the memory from her brain, she would never forget Bobo’s smile that day, the satisfaction he had got from messing with her, from throwing a six year olds world upside-down. Of course there had never been any truth to his claims, Wynonna, her mother and father had gone out of their way to prove that to her, but she would never forget how it had made her feel.

Wiping a tear that had leaked out onto her cheek away Waverly picked up the report in front of her, taking a deep breath she forced herself to concentrate.

Bobo may have made her feel worthless back then, but sitting in this chair, in this office, holding this report, she knew that meant that she wasn’t. She wasn’t worthless, she was someone, and damn it all was she going to prove it.

With renewed resolve she flipped open the first page of the report and began to read.

* * *

“I’m home!”

“Hey!” Wynonna’s head popped up over the couch as Waverly trudged into the living room, dropping her bag down onto the floor and slumping down onto the sofa. Wynonna lifted her legs to accommodate her sister before settling them back down on Waverly’s lap. “How was your first day?”

“It was really good.” Waverly grinned, “Professor Harrison had gotten me all these books and papers that I thought I was going to have to spend ages tracking down, it should help me get a good head start on the research.”

“That’s really great to hear.” Wynonna beamed at her, patting her foot supportively.

“What have you been up to today?” Waverly asked.

“I have been living it up.” Wynonna spread her arms out and gestured to the living room, which was covered in dirty plates. The TV was blaring some kind of cop drama and there was a half-finished carton of juice resting on the floor by the sofa.

“Have you moved from the sofa at all today?”

“There was the odd toilet break.” Wynonna replied. “But mostly I just sat on my ass.”

“That’s what you do most days.” Waverly laughed.

“Hey!” Wynonna protested. “I have a job! I just don’t need to be up and about during the day to do it.”

“Are you working tonight?” Waverly pushed Wynonna’s legs off her and headed for the kitchen, pulling open the fridge she surveyed the contents.

“Unfortunately.” Wynonna yawned, pushing herself up off the sofa she stretched before joining Waverly by the fridge. “What’s for dinner?”

“Whatever you’re cooking,” Waverly replied, reaching for the wine bottle.

“Toast It is!” Wynonna proclaimed.

“Such a nutritious meal.” Waverly teased, pouring herself a glass.

“Watch it or I’ll make yours extra burnt.” Wynonna wagged a warning finger.

Waverly chuckled and sipped at her drink, it was times like these that she appreciated that she had Wynonna back in her life for good, it hadn’t been easy getting back into a rhythm when she had come back, neither had really known how to react to being around the other. But all of that awkwardness had dissipated two years later and on days like today, when she had been lost in the less savoury memories of her childhood, that coming home to the reassuring presence of her sister made all the difference to Waverly.

“You got any plans for tonight baby girl?”

“I’ve brought some reading home so I think I might just make a start on that.” Waverly looked up from her bowl of pasta to find Wynonna watching her. “What?”

“Nothing,” Wynonna went back to her own food. “I just don’t want you to get lost in your books. You did it a lot when we were kids, at home anyway.”

“I’m not going to Wy.”

“Then you need to socialise more,” Wynonna waved a forkful of food around as she spoke. “Your only social interactions come from those drunks at the bar…and me. And trust me that’s not a good combination at all, too much booze involved.”

“If you must know I had a ‘social interaction’ yesterday.”

“Oh really? With who?”

“Nicole.”

“Who’s Nicole?” Wynonna frowned in confusion.

“Nicole Haught. The police officer.”

Immediately Wynonna’s face sparked in recognition. “Ahhh Officer Haughtstuff! How is her face after the whole…” she trailed off, miming a punching motion with her fist.

“It’s pretty nasty, stitches and everything.” Waverly gave a small wince as she remembered the ugly red gash across the officer’s face.

“Ohhh.” Wynonna grinned. “Cool!” Waverly resisted the urge to roll her eyes, only her sister would think that stitches were cool.

“I wish I’d been there to see her sock stupid Carl in the face.” Wynonna carried on, a slightly wistful look on her face. 

“It was pretty awesome.” Waverly agreed. “She packs a pretty right mean hook.” Waverly neglected to mention that watching Nicole punch Carl in the face had been hot as hell. That particular anecdote she kept for herself.

“So what were you and the good officer talking about?”

“My fellowship mostly. I think I may have talked her ear off.” Waverly moved her food around her plate as she spoke.

“I’m sure she didn’t mind at all; from what I know of Officer Haughtstuff she seems to have a heart of gold.” Waverly looked up surprised at her sister’s words, it was rare for Wynonna to say anything nice about anyone, it was rare for Wynonna to say anything nice period.

“You think?”

“Yeah, it’s not every new police officer who would let the town pariah off a public indecency charge. Nah she’s pretty cool.” Wynonna stood up and put her place in the sink. “It’s good you’re meeting some new people Wave.”

* * *

Across town in the Sheriff’s office Nicole Haught sat at her desk, hunched over her desk, eyes straining in the light to read the report laid out in front of her. It was late but the young officer hadn’t glanced up at the clock in some time, she had been too engrossed in the reports, each several inches thick that she had pulled from the store room at the back of the police station.

In the few weeks Nicole had been working for Purgatory police force there had been a noted rise in gang activity. There were several gangs that operated in the area, usually they all steered clear of each other, staking their claim’s to different small towns and conducting their business there. Recently however, it seemed that things had been escalating, with Purgatory being the war zone.

The Revenants, the gang that worked out of Purgatory, had been laying low for the last couple of years according to Nedley, but it seemed that in the last few weeks the gang had become increasingly brazen. There had been reports of intimidation, assaults and of course the bar fight from a few days prior. Nicole could still feel the aftermath of that particular report whenever she moved her facial muscles.

Nedley had given her permission to pull up all the old files they had on the gangs to see if she could find any reason as to why they had suddenly stepped up their activity, ‘rather you than me’ he had grunted when she had asked him. She was slightly starting to regret her decision as there were hundreds of files, many of them were handwritten reports and the officers who had written them did not have the best handwriting.

Leaning back in her chair Nicole rubbed her eyes and sighed wearily, as much as she was trying to concentrate on her work, her mind kept wandering, back to the subject she hadn’t been able to shake from her thoughts for weeks now.

Waverly Earp.

With a low groan Nicole let her head fall forward, the sound her forehead made as it hit the desk echoing around the silent room. She was in trouble and she knew it, every day that passed that the truth didn’t come out only made her situation worse and worse.

She wanted to tell her, of course she did. She had even tried to a couple of times, but the words either stuck in her throat or she was interrupted, Nicole tried not to take this as a bad sign.

Every day that passed only made it harder.

“Dammit.” Nicole growled into the wood of her desk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't want to spend too much time in Nicole's POV just yet, but I did want a scene to show that she's conflicted and annoyed with herself about how things are going with Waverly. There will be a more detailed look at her reasons for not saying anything in future chapters. I wanted this chapter to have a nice WayHaught interaction, to show that the connection they have is still there, I hope that comes across. Let me know what you thought in the comments, leave kudos and come and chat to me on tumblr. 
> 
> Hopefully be back with a new chapter in a few days. Until next time!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to have this done yesterday but I had a bit of trouble with the ending of the chapter so decided to sleep on it and finish it today. This is a very Wayhaught filled chapter because you guys deserve it! No more from me just wanted to say thank you for your continued support on this, it does mean the world to me! Enjoy the chapter.

“Waverly, have you seen my leather jacket?” Waverly looked up from her book as Wynonna’s voice drifted through the homestead.

“It’s probably where it usually is. On the floor somewhere.” She called back, eyes already scanning the page in front of her again.

“There are a lot of floors here!” Wynonna whined and Waverly could hear her stomping around upstairs. “Waverly!”

“What?!” Waverly let out an exasperated sigh as her reading was interrupted again.

“Help me!”

Pushing herself out of her seat with a growl the youngest Earp marched out of the room, only to find Wynonna at the top of the stairs, slipping into her leather jacket.

“I found it!” she grinned down at Waverly who was watching her with an expression torn between fury and disbelief. “You didn’t need to get up.”

“One of these days Wynonna I’m going to do a Nicole and punch you in the face.” Waverly grumbled. 

“I’d like to see you try baby girl.” Wynonna called after her. “Just remember who won all our fights when we were kids, you were never the most athletic.”

“I’ve been doing a lot of yoga!” Waverly popped her head around the door, pointing threateningly at her sister.

“Ohhhh I’m so scared! You going to zen me right in the face?”  Wynonna chuckled as she descended the stairs.

“I’ll do a lot more than zen you.” Waverly muttered darkly.

“Of course you will.” Wynonna patted her sister’s cheek slowly and deliberately, her tone patronising, easily skipping out of the way of Waverly’s flailing arm.

“You’ll have to do better than that! I’m off out now, so I’ll see you later.”

Waverly stuck her tongue out at Wynonna’s retreating back before turning her attention back to her book. She was currently working her way through a very old record book that listed land ownership in the area, hoping to find some records for Wyatt Earp and the lands he might have held. It was only a small part of her research, but there were a few record books for the time period she was studying and none of them had been digitised so she had to go through all of them by hand, it was time consuming and at times boring, but she relished the challenge of keeping herself entertained whilst doing even the most boring of tasks. She wanted to savour every experience this fellowship had to offer.

After another hour of reading the tiny scrawled print Waverly found her eyes starting to ache, leaning back in her chair a glance at the clock told her she needed to get ready for work anyway. With no small amount of relief, she gently closed the book and headed for her room to get changed.

Shorty’s was thankfully quiet when Waverly arrived to take over from Gus, her head was starting to ache from several hours of pouring over the small text and she was in no mood to deal with rowdy drunks. Grabbing a towel from the bar she started to polish glasses, all the while keeping a practiced, watchful eye on the patrons.

Both Shorty and Gus had been worried that in the days after the last fight there would be further unrest, but it seemed that the police presence had helped to keep the troublemakers away.

For now.

Her headache gently began to subside and Waverly fell easily into her work routine, taking full advantage of the quiet to clean the bar area until the wood was shinning and there wasn’t a single dirty glass in sight.

She was just standing back to admire her handiwork when she heard the door swing open behind her and the sweet sound of Nicole Haught’s laughter reached her ears, turning towards the source of the sound Waverly watched as the redhead entered the bar, accompanied by one of her male colleagues who was gesturing wildly with his hands.

As if she sensed she was being watched Nicole looked up and treated Waverly to one of her wide grins, one hand coming up to wave at the brunette. Waverly returned it eagerly, a grin of her own spreading across her face before she could stop it.

It had been a few weeks since the bar fight and the friendship between Waverly and Nicole had blossomed. The officer made a point to stop by every time Waverly was working, usually under the impression of getting coffee, but more often the beverage went cold as the two chatted.

Waverly wasn’t used to talking about herself, when you grew up on a house with Wynonna and Willa, the attention and conversation tended to be focused solely on the two elder Earp’s and their constant competitions. Waverly had never considered herself very interesting, and she certainly wasn’t confident enough to pit herself against Willa and Wynonna.

Talking with Champ had mostly consisted in her ex bragging, about anything and everything to do with himself. Very rarely did he ask anything more personal than ‘how are you?’ and on the rare occasions he did the answer was usually cut off after a few words so he could get back to speaking about himself.

Even in her job Waverly was a listener. Such was the plight of a barmaid, she spent a lot of her time standing in silence, listening to the stories of her customers. Alcohol was a very effective way of loosening the tongue and over the years at Shorty’s she had heard it all. People had confessed their guilt at cheating on a partner, the joy of a promotion or the fear of parenthood, and many other problems, triumphs and, more often than not, outright mundane anecdotes, she listened to them all. She had nodded and murmured in all the right places, offered comfort where needed, even a hug on occasion. Then there were the drunken advances which she had learnt to deflect with ease now.

In all of these conversations she was very rarely asked a question more complex than ‘what time do you get off?’. It wasn’t that she minded as such, Waverly didn’t think that was that much about herself worth talking about, but there were times when she wished that people saw past the smile and wave and realised there was a person underneath.

Nicole seemed the be the exception to this rule, without fail, whenever she saw Waverly the older woman seemed to make it her mission to find out something knew about her. Waverly didn’t think she had ever been asked as many questions in her life as she had the past few weeks.

Nicole listened intently to every answer Waverly gave her, drinking in each word as if they were the first words she had ever heard, and every time Nicole watched her, a look in her eyes that made Waverly think she was seeing all of her, really seeing her.

“The usual?” Waverly leant her elbows on the bar and gave Nicole a smirk as the officer approached the bar.

“Am I that predictable?” Nicole laughed.

“You’ve been staring at the coffee machine since you got in here.” Waverly replied as she gestured to the machine that was sat directly behind her.

“Right, the coffee machine.” Nicole rubbed her cheek, a motion Waverly had noticed her doing more and more in the last few weeks, almost like a nervous tick. Waverly told herself that she noticed the action because she liked to watch people, know their small habits and it was _definitely_ not because the sight of Nicole’s dexterous fingers had her slightly memorised.

No, that definitely wasn’t the reason. 

The cut on Nicole’s face had healed well, all that was left was a red line that the doctor had assured Nicole would fade with time, but she was stuck with it in the meantime.

Waverly couldn’t help but think the scar was pretty hot, but she tried to stifle these thoughts when they appeared. She had too much to think about to dwell on her still unanswered questions about her attraction to women. 

Although the fact the answer seemed pretty obvious was something she was stoutly ignoring. 

“One cappuccino and one regular black coffee coming right up.”

“Thank you.” Waverly flashed a smile over her shoulder at Nicole’s murmured thanks. “So, how’s the fellowship going?”

“Slowly.” Waverly replied over the noise of the coffee maker. “There’s a _lot_ of reading involved!”

“Who knew that an academic scholarship would contain lots and lots of reading.” Nicole quipped with a smirk.

“Do you want this or not?” Waverly held the freshly made cappuccino up in front of the other woman’s face, noting with a smile as Nicole’s eyes followed the cup intently.

“My apologies ma’am, I am totally and utterly surprised at the amount of reading involved in your fellowship.”

“Right, guess your coffee is mine now.” Waverly moved the cup back across the bar, when she looked up again she was confronted with a look on Nicole’s face that could only be described as puppy dog, the officer’s eyes had widened so much that she almost looked like a cartoon character, and her lower lip was jutting out slightly in the barest hint of a pout.

Waverly was powerless to resist.

“Oh my god what is that?!” she giggled, pushing the coffee back across the bar to the eager hands of the redhead.

“That’s my ‘get the barmaid to give me my coffee despite me taking the mick face’.” Nicole replied taking a sip, her whole body visibly relaxing as the caffeine hit her system.

“Well its super effective. You should probably have a permit for that thing.”

“I’ll get right on it.” Nicole grinned, her hands wrapped protectively around her coffee cup, as if Waverly might attempt to steal it at any moment.  “In the meantime I should probably get Paul his coffee, we start in a few minutes. I’m on the late shift.” The look on the redhead’s face told Waverly that she did not relish the idea.

“What time do you finish?”

“Ugh, not till like two in the morning.” Nicole placed some money on the bar and picked up the coffees. “My cat is going to hate me.”

As she walked away it struck Waverly that this was the first time she had ever heard Nicole mention a cat.

In the weeks they had known each other come to think of it Waverly realised she actually knew very little about the other woman. Whenever they spoke it was usually Waverly talking and Nicole listening, and at any point the conversation seemed to move back towards Nicole she would turn it around by asking Waverly another question, usually one she had never been asked before and that required a long detailed answer.

She knew the basic things, she knew that Nicole had come from Chicago, that she had wanted to be a police officer for a long time. She knew that Nicole loved coffee and beer, but would never say no to a shot of whiskey if someone else was buying.

She didn’t even know where she lived

There was so much she didn’t know, and Nicole seemed in no real hurry to open up about herself. Whenever Waverly did get the chance to probe the redhead seemed to provide very minimal answers.

Waverly had also noticed the look, the look she had seen in Shorty’s when they’d be chatting, just before Carl had interrupted them. The look usually darkened Nicole’s face when she thought Waverly wasn’t looking, eyebrows furrow and eyes dimming. It looked like she was battling with herself, although over what and which side won Waverly had no idea. 

There were also times when the redhead would open her mouth to speak, often preceded by a deep breath or heavy sigh, but on all these occasions, sometimes in the silence between conversations, or in the middle of one, no words ever came out.

Waverly was puzzled by the behaviour but never had a chance to ask about it, Nicole would always deftly change the subject before she could. As much as she wanted to pry Waverly let the other woman be, if she had something to say she would say it in her own time, Waverly didn’t like to push people, that was Wynonna’s job.

Waverly was still lost in her thoughts as Nicole and Paul left, Nicole shooting her another dazzling smile as she did so. Waverly returned it eagerly, trying not to think about the way the smile made her heart beat slightly faster in her chest.

* * *

There was a storm a few nights later, the sky had been darkening all day and by early evening it was raining heavily, lightning flashed across the sky accompanied by low rumblings of thunder.

Waverly had always liked storms, ever since she was a little girl she had loved sitting up late into the night, watching as Mother Nature raged outside her window. On the occasions she was feeling particularly brave, she would sneak outside and stand in the yard, face tilted up towards the sky. The drops hitting her face always felt like they were washing away the worries of her day, cleaning the slate to start again.

She had been found once by Willa, who had dragged her inside, fingers digging so tightly into the skin of Waverly’s upper arms that it had brought tears to her eyes. Wynonna had managed to talk Willa out of telling their father, he tended to have a very low tolerance for rule breaking, instead she snuck Waverly upstairs and towelled her dry before their parents even knew she had left her room. She had been much more careful in future not to get caught.

This particular storm was vicious, the wind howled round the homestead, rattling the windows loudly as if clamouring to get in, the rain pounded against the roof so hard that Waverly was half worried that it was going to cave in. Sitting at the table, laptop open in front of her, trying to get some of her thoughts about her research onto paper. Her fingers tapped lightly against the keyboard, staring at the blank page in front of her, she had been at this for hours but had made very little progress. Usually doing her work during a storm helped her concentrate, the beat of the rain an almost soothing noise, but there was something about tonight that was different. Frowning slightly, she pulled one of the books towards her, flipping through the pages for the reference to a particular outlaw that she had spotted earlier that afternoon.

A loud knock at the door pulled Waverly from her reading with a jolt, the homestead was isolated enough that any car could be heard long before it approached the house, the rain was so loud that she must have missed it.

Whatever Waverly was expecting when she opened the door it certainly was _not_ Nicole Haught, in her uniform, soaking wet.

Waverly was sure that her jaw dropped slightly as she took in the sight of the police officer, her wet shirt clung tight to her body, accentuating every single curve perfectly. Her hair, still in its braid, was without its usual hat, wet strands sticking to her face. Water droplets ran down her cheeks and neck, disappearing inside the collar of her open shirt. Waverly’s eyes followed the drops shamelessly, throat going a little dry.

“Umm. Waverly.”

“Sorry, what?” Waverly realised she must have been staring for at least half a minute, something that was more than a little creepy, she hadn’t even thought about why Nicole would be at her house in the middle of the night.

That was when Waverly noticed that Nicole was not alone, leaning heavily against the officer’s side, head lolling forward slightly and Nicole’s hat perched on it was Wynonna.

“Is she ok?” Waverly asked, reaching out to help Nicole guide Wynonna into the house.

“Yeah, she’s fine. Just had a bit too much to drink.” Nicole grunted as she dropped Wynonna on the sofa. “I was finishing my shift when I found her standing outside of Shorty’s, she seemed a bit off so I offered to drive her home.”

“That was very nice of you, thank you.” Waverly bobbed down in front of her sister and shook her shoulder gently. “Wy, it’s me, Waverly. You ok?”

Wynonna lifted her head, her eyes blearily trying to focus on her sister.

“Hey Waves,” her voice was hoarse, as if she’d been shouting a lot. “I’m fine, don’t worry about me. Just…just had one of my turns.”

“Why didn’t you call me?” Waverly removed Nicole’s hat, placing it on the coffee table she smoothed the wet hair back from her sister’s forehead.

“Didn’t want to bother you. Know you’re working hard.” Wynonna mumbled.

“That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t call me, ever.” Waverly responded. “You should never feel like you’re bothering me.” Pulling Wynonna into a hug she cast a glance at Nicole, who was still standing behind them, a concerned look on her face.

Since she had come back from her travels after Curtis’ death Wynonna hadn’t been the same, yes she was still snarky, sarcastic, rude and in possession a razor sharp wit, but there was a haunted feel to her that hadn’t been there before their father’s death. She never spoke about what happened but there were times when her older sister looked like she had the weight of the world on her shoulder, slowly pushing her down into the ground. Waverly wanted to ask, wanted to know what had happened so she could help, but somehow she could never bring herself to. There was a part of her that was scared to ask what had happened, because only something horrendous could dampen any part of Wynonna Earp’s carefree spirit, the selfish part of Waverly didn’t know if she could deal with it.

Occasionally, when things seemed to get too much for her, Wynonna had what she liked to call her ‘funny turns’, these ranged from her dropping off the grid for a couple of days, coming back looking like hell or, like tonight, drinking herself into oblivion. Sometimes she called Waverly, begging her to come and get her, and sometimes she said nothing, with the aftermath being the only indication to her sister that something had happened.

“I’m sorry Waverly.” Wynonna’s voice was muffled into her shoulder and she could feel her sister’s fingers tightening on her arm.

“You have nothing to be sorry for.” Waverly tried not to let her voice break, tried not to show Wynonna she was upset. She needed to be the strong one, she needed to look after her sister.

After some gentle coaxing Waverly was able to get Wynonna out of her wet clothes and tucked up in bed. For a few moments she watched the elder Earp sleep, noting not for the first time how much younger, how much more relaxed she looked in slumber.

When she came back downstairs Nicole was still standing awkwardly in the same place she had been since she had walked into the house, the officer had her hands resting on her belt, fingers flexing and unflexing nervously.

“Hey.” Nicole turned at Waverly’s soft voice.

“Hey, I didn’t know if I should go or not so I just…” she gestured to where she was standing.

“I’m glad you stayed.” Waverly approached her and placed a hand on the other woman’s arm. “Oh my god you’re still soaking wet! We should get you out of those clothes!”

“Really there’s no need for that Waverly…I’m fine.” Nicole stammered, unable to hide the shiver that wracked her body from the chill.

“Nonsense, you’re shaking like a leaf.”

“I’m fine really.” Nicole insisted, even as Waverly dragged her into the kitchen. “I’ll dry off soon enough.” Digging in her heels she forced the smaller woman to come to a stop. “Really.”

“Well at least let me get you a towel and a hot drink, warm you up a bit.” Waverly was off before Nicole could respond, returning a moment later with a fluffy towel which she pressed into Nicole’s hands before rushing off to boil the kettle. “Sit!”

Nicole sank down into a seat immediately at Waverly’s tone, loosening her braid from its restraints she combed her fingers through her hair before rubbing it with a towel.

“How do you take your tea?”

“A little milk, no sugar.” Nicole reappeared from under the towel in time to see a steaming hot mug being placed in front of her. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Waverly took a seat opposite Nicole, “although I should be the one thanking you. Not many people would deal with Wynonna when she gets like that, she has a habit of being quite…confrontational.”

“Trust me, she was far from amicable.” Nicole replied her hands curling round her cup. “But she seemed in a bad way so I couldn’t leave her there.”

“You have no idea how much to means to me that you brought her back,” Waverly glanced upwards to the room where Wynonna lay sleeping. “I worry that she’s going to do something stupid when she gets like this, that one day she’s going to get in a fight or wander off and never come back or…”

“Waverly,” Nicole spoke softly, cutting through the hysteria that Waverly could feel rising in her chest at the thought of something happening to her sister. “She’s ok, and trust me, I don’t think she’s going anywhere any time soon.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because, all the way here, in amongst the drunken ramblings, the thing she talked about most was you.”

“Me?”

“Yes, Waverly your sister thinks the world of you, and she isn’t leaving you.” Nicole smiled and reaching out placed a hand over Waverly’s, squeezing softly in comfort.

“She really said that?”

“She really did.”

Nicole’s smile was enough to convince Waverly that she was telling the truth and she gave the other woman a grateful smile of her own. “Thank you.”

“You’re very welcome.” Nicole brought her mug up to her lips, taking a long sip and sighing contentedly.

“Feeling a bit warmer?” Waverly asked.

“I am, yes thank you.” Nicole drained the rest of her tea and stood up. “I should get going really, I’ve intruded on your evening.”

“No, you haven’t.” Waverly stood as well, reluctant to see the redhead go.

“You’re busy.” Nicole gestured to the laptop and open books still spread out on the table.

“Oh I wasn’t getting anywhere when you showed up, I was thinking of calling it a night soon.” Waverly reached out and closed the heavy textbook.

“Then I should let you sleep.” Nicole made to move towards the door, right as a large clap of thunder shook the house, followed a few seconds later by the flash of lightening.

“There’s no way I’m letting you go back out and drive in that storm!” Waverly moved forward and planted herself between Nicole and the door. “Please, at least stay until it’s died down a little bit?”

Nicole looked a little unsure, but the next large roll of thunder seemed to leave her with no choice. “Ok, I’ll stay.”

“Great!” Waverly beamed, reaching out she took Nicole’s arm and dragged her back into the living room. “Hang tight, I’ll get you another towel.”

The storm dragged on as the two sat in the living room, chatting easily about superficial things, Waverly was not inclined to try and dig deeper into the unanswered questions she had about Nicole, her mind was too preoccupied with Wynonna. Tonight was not the time for them. She was glad of the easy conversation, the light teasing and the sense of calm that Nicole always seemed to bring with her.

“What were you researching tonight?” Nicole asked, her eyes flicking to the table whilst taking a swig of her third cup of tea and then back to Waverly. The smaller woman had started the evening sat in one of the armchairs opposite Nicole, but as the evening had worn on she had moved closer until she was now sat next to Nicole on the sofa, one arm stretched across the back.

“I was doing research on some of the more obscure outlaws that Wyatt killed to see if there was anything else I could find out about them, I’m trying to compile the most complete list of all of the outlaws.”

“That sounds pretty interesting, how are you getting on?”

“Slowly.” Waverly groaned. “Some of the records are patchy at best, and others are so weirdly written I can neither make head nor tail of them.”

“I’m sure you’ll be absolutely fine with that big brain of yours.” Nicole grinned and placed her empty cup on the coffee table. “You’re the smartest person I know.”

“How do you do that?” Waverly blushed, ducking her head.

“Do what?”

“Make me feel like…like I’m the most important person, that what I’m saying means something.” Waverly shifted in her seat eyes focusing on her feet.

“Because.” Nicole titled Waverly’s chin up with her forefinger. “You deserve to be made to feel that way, because you are…incredible.”

“See, now I think you’re lying to me Officer Haught.” Waverly laughed. “I’m a pretty average small town girl.”

“Waverly Earp.” Nicole fixed Waverly with a stare that kept her rooted to the spot, a slight smirk pulling at her mouth. “You are _anything_ but an average small town girl.” At her words Waverly shifted closer on the sofa, as if pulled forward by some unseen force.

“How’d you figure that?”

“You’re meant for such bigger things.” Nicole replied easily. “This fellowship, is only the beginning of what you’re going to achieve, you mark my words. And you deserve every second of the success I know you’re going to have. You’re a smart, kind, beautiful person, there’s no way you’re not going to be successful.”

“Why Officer, that was ever so charming.” Waverly slapped Nicole’s arm playfully.

“It has been known to happen.” Nicole shrugged. “But I’m being serious, you should realise how amazing you are.” Her voice was so sincere, her eyes so bright that Waverly felt herself leaning even further forward, very aware of the sudden change in the air, a tension much like there had been in Shorty’s the first time they met.

“I think you’re just saying that.” Waverly muttered, aware that she was now only inches away from Nicole.

“Why would I just be saying that?” Nicole asked, her eyes trained on Waverly’s, intense and deep.

“Because, you’re so…” Waverly paused to search for the word, mostly because when Nicole looked at her like that she forgot how to think, let alone speak. “…pure.” She managed finally moving her face an inch closer. She was so close now that she could see Nicole’s throat move as she swallowed, nervousness entering her eyes for the first time.

“Pure?” Nicole whispered, closing the gap another inch. The tension in the room was intensifying with every second that went by and Waverly could feel her breathing quickening,

“Yeah, I mean, you’re so nice.” Nicole’s eyes flicked down at the compliment as Waverly carried on. “And you’re so genuine, when you say things to me, I believe them and I want to be better because of them which is why you could be just saying that to make me feel better and because you know that I’ll believe you.”

“Did you ever think that I might be saying them because they’re true.” Nicole murmured.

“I do.” Waverly replied, one hand coming up to caress Nicole’s cheek, across the scar that stood out on her pale skin. Nicole’s eyes drifted closed and she sighed, leaning into the touch. Their lips were so close now Waverly could feel Nicole’s breath ghosting over her face. “Because I trust you.” Waverly mumbled when their lips were a hairs breadth away.

Two things happened at once in that moment, Nicole jerked away sharply, right as she heard Wynonna sleepily calling her name from the top of the stairs. Nicole was already on her feet before Waverly could even begin to process what was happening.

Wynonna called her name again, Waverly sighed heavily and headed for the stairs, shooting Nicole an apologetic look over her shoulder, not that the officer saw it as she was staring very intently at her shoes. After dealing with Wynonna, she had woken up in a panic because she thought she had lost her keys, Waverly returned downstairs determined to get some answers about what had just happened.

Only to find Nicole on her way out.

“You’re leaving?”

Nicole stopped, one hand on the door handle, the other securing her hat on her head. “Yeah, I need to go it’s really late and I have work tomorrow.”

“But should we talk about…”

“I’m sorry Waverly but I really can’t stay.” Nicole cut her off, her eyes seemed to be looking anywhere but at Waverly and there was a desperation in her voice that the younger woman hadn’t heard before. “I’ll speak to you soon, tell Wynonna I hope she’s feels better tomorrow. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye.” Waverly called after her as the door snapped shut, echoing around the now silent room. 

The storm had finally stopped.

Waverly moved around the house, tidying things away, her brain working overtime to try and work out what had just happened.

Well, it was obvious what had been _about_ to happen, she had been about to kiss Nicole, she had _wanted_ to kiss Nicole. Had Wynonna not interrupted would they have kissed? And why had Nicole jerked away, was it because of Wynonna or was there something else, had Nicole not wanted to kiss her? She could have sworn she had seen the same desire in the redhead’s eyes that she knew had swam in her own eyes. 

Waverly had been doing her best to do as she had promised herself and put her one-night stand with the mysterious female out her of mind and to one side. But putting it into a box and never looking inside was proving to be a harder task than she had anticipated.

Part of this was due to the fact that Waverly hated unanswered questions, it was the main reason she had taken an interest in history. There were so many unanswered mysteries and questions in the world and she wanted to find answers for at least some of them. The idea of having unresolved questions in her own life, things that she wasn’t absolutely sure of unsettled her as they should be the easiest questions to answer.

It was as she was climbing into bed half an hour later that Waverly realised that that night, all those weeks ago had awoken something in her, something she didn’t quite understand and something that scared her a little bit. It had come to the fore that evening quite starkly and she was being forced to admit that maybe hiding from the fact that she did find woman attractive. Specifically, one woman.

Waverly sighed heavily before speaking into the darkness of her room, saying out loud for the first time something she had been coming to realise for a while.

“I have a crush on Nicole Haught.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed that! Tell me what you thought in the comments and kudos always appreciated! I've decided to start posting on Tumblr when I update chapters so if you'd like to know when chapters are going to be updated come over and say hi! Rehizle28. Not sure when I'll have another chapter out as I'm away at a Pride festival this weekend but will hope to have one up by mid next week. 
> 
> Until next time!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry this is up a little later than usual, but I had a crazy full weekend with very little time to write. Short note again from me just want to say thanks again for the kudos and the comments. This chapter is where the meat of the story begins to happen so I hope you enjoy it!

It was funny how one little thing had the power to ruin an entire day.

Waverly had known Wynonna was going to say something she didn’t like the moment she came downstairs for breakfast. Her sister was sat at the kitchen table, coffee mug clasped in one hand and eyes trained on the wall in thoughtful contemplation.

“What’s wrong?” Waverly asked cautiously when Wynonna turned to look at her, the nervousness written all over her face.

“I err, just got off the phone with Willa.”

“Oh.” Waverly nodded, gesturing for Wynonna to continue.

“Yeah, her and Bobo are going to be here in a couple of days.”

“I see.” Waverly crossed to the fridge, yanking it open perhaps a little harsher than necessary. 

“I know you don’t want her here Waverly and I get that I really do but...” Wynonna paused. “...she is our sister.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” Waverly’s voice held no warmth and Wynonna supressed a sigh.

“I know she wasn’t the easiest to live with Waves.”

“The easiest to live with?! Wynonna, she made my childhood hell!”

“I know she did, and there’s no excuse for that. But...” Wynonna trailed off again and Waverly could see the haunted look return to her eyes, ever since her funny turn a few nights before Wynonna had been more subdued than usual, often falling into dark silences. “...We need to stick together, we’re all each other has left, and sometimes, I miss her.”

At Wynonna’s hesitant words Waverly felt the anger drain from her body like water down a plug hole. Vulnerable was not a word most people would use to describe Wynonna, and she did often hide behind her humour and barbed words but Waverly knew that deep down Wynonna was conflicted. Torn between the belief that she didn’t need anyone and the need for love and acceptance, something that had been hard to come by from anyone outside her siblings. Waverly also knew that when Wynonna spoke like this it was her way of opening herself up, leaving herself vulnerable by laying bare her insecurities and fears.

Crossing from the fridge Waverly pulled her sister into a brief, tight hug, knowing the prolonged physical contact was not something she appreciated.

“I know you do.” She sighed. “I’m sorry you don’t see her as much because of me.”

“Hey, don’t you ever think that.” Wynonna placed her hands on Waverly’s shoulders. “I don’t see Willa as much because of Willa, and that asshat of a husband of hers, not you.”

“But still, you would speak to her more if it weren’t for me.”

“Maybe I would,” Wynonna shrugged. “But it’s not like she’s constantly calling. I can call and tell her it’s not a good time?”

She was offering Waverly a way out, a chance to be selfish at the expense of her own needs. This was the side of Wynonna that few saw, the girl who would do anything for her little sister, even if it meant turning her back on the only other family she had.

Waverly couldn’t ask her to do that.

“No, really there’s no need for that. Like you said, we are sisters and we all need to stick together it’s what mom would have wanted. Who knows, maybe she’s changed in the time she’s been away.”

Both of them knew that Waverly’s words were false hope.

“Maybe she has.” Wynonna nodded, clearly not believing it for a second. “Whatever happens with them here we face it together baby girl.”

Waverly nodded her agreement, not trusting herself to speak for fear of saying something she would regret.

Despite Wynonna’s reassurances, the news that Willa and Bobo would be here in a matter of days left her in a sour mood that did not improve when she left the homestead to head to work a few hours later.

It had been a good couple of years since Waverly had seen her sister and even longer since she had seen Bobo. Willa had not taken kindly to the two of them missing her wedding and had given them both the cold shoulder for a year because of it, not that that had bothered Waverly all that much, but it had Wynonna. It was because of Wynonna that Waverly had eventually reached out to Willa, looking to mend bridges and get the sisters talking again. 

Since then they had maintained an uneasy peace, it wasn’t loving, it was barely even friendly, but it was enough. This would be the first time Willa had come home since before her wedding and Waverly was dreading the inevitable uneasiness and tension that was bound to descend.

The imminent arrival of her eldest sister and her husband were not the only things on her mind, Waverly’s thoughts of late had also been consumed by the kiss that had almost happened with Nicole during the storm.

The officer had texted her the next day apologising profusely for rushing off, citing a long hard day as the reason for her somewhat frazzled nature. No mention was made of the almost kiss, and Waverly was loath to bring it up herself. If Nicole didn’t want to discuss it, it just meant that Waverly had been mistaken when she had leant forward, thinking Nicole felt the same way.

Waverly wasn’t sure herself that she wanted to talk about it, since admitting her crush on the older woman out loud (only to herself of course) she had been struggling with what it meant for her. Waverly had always been practical, attempting to look at any problem presented to her in a logical, straightforward manner, simplify the problem and you simplify the solution had always been her mantra. And in the past it had worked very well.

It was not working here.

This problem was anything but straightforward and no matter how hard Waverly tried there was no way to simplify it down to its barest elements. There was no magic fix to help her work out these feelings and move on, they were complex, they seemed to change on an almost daily basis.

Waverly had nothing against the idea of being gay (or bi), it was just something she had never considered would happen to her before. Sure she had always appreciated female beauty, but never before had she felt _attracted_ to women. The feeling whilst strange, was not unpleasant, far from it.

In amongst the many things she didn’t know there were a few things that she _did_ know.

She knew that when Nicole smiled at her it caused her heart to beat slightly faster in her chest, there was something so comforting and slightly familiar about it.

She knew that Nicole’s dimples made her knees go a little weak.

She knew the sound of Nicole’s laughter never failed to put a smile on her face.

_Jeez you’ve got it bad girl._

Of course Waverly knew that she could work through her feelings a little easier if she spoke to someone about them, it was the most logical course of action. She had thought about it, and had almost approached Wynonna on a number of occasions, but there was something that had always stopped her, held her back just before the words could form. Once she told someone about her feelings, about that night and all that had happened since that was it, they were out in the world and there was no way she could take them back. If she did decide they meant nothing and she wanted to sweep them under the carpet, then no one would be none the wiser.

It was a cowardly approach to be sure, but Waverly would be lying if she said that the reaction of the townsfolk wasn’t a major factor in her decision to keep her feelings to herself. She had no idea what people in town thought of things like that, but she knew enough about small towns to know that they could sometimes be less than savoury about new things. The contempt Wynonna had been treated with when she had gone off the rails in her teen years was testament to that, Waverly didn’t usually cate what people thought of her, but in this instance she wasn’t about to go blindly rushing into telling people until she was a little surer of herself.

“Can I get a beer please?” the sound of Champ’s voice was enough to have Waverly grinding her teeth, bad mood now even worse. Grabbing a glass, she filled it as quickly as possible before slamming it down on the bar and swiping the money that he offered.

“Hey!” Champ protested as beer slopped on his hand.

“Just drink your beer!” Waverly snapped wiping the bar, when she looked up Champ was watching hr with a hurt look in his eyes. “I’m sorry I snapped, I’m just in a bad mood today.” It wasn’t his fault that Willa was coming back, or that she was constantly replaying the moment she had almost kissed Nicole over and over again in her head, imaging every single way it could have gone.

“Anything I can do to help?” Champ asked eagerly, jumping on the chance to get back into her good books.

“No, there’s nothing you can do. But thank you.”

Champ looked like he was going to say something else, but was interrupted by the sudden appearance of Chrissy Nedley and Stephanie Jones.

“We have gossip.” Stephanie said proudly, eyes shining at the prospect of sharing her news. Stephanie had been in the same year as Waverly at school, always the most popular girl the two of them had not always seen eye to eye, due in a large part to Stephanie’s clear dislike of Wynonna, the blonde had clashed with her sister many times over the years, the most memorable of these encounters being the time Stephanie told Wynonna she should get a butt lift in front of half the town. Wynonna’s response had been predictably violent, a very impressive punch to the kidney that had landed her a night in the cells, but she still claimed it was one of her proudest moments.

“What gossip?” Waverly asked wearily, she had never been one for idle gossip, being an Earp meant being on the receiving end of a lot of it.

“So you know the new deputy, Nicole?” Waverly’s stomach did a small flip at the mention of the officer’s name and she mentally berated herself for the reaction.

“I know her, what about it?”

“Well, she was talking to one of other officers the other day and...” Chrissy started talking before Stephanie cut her off.

“She’s gay!”

Waverly blinked in surprise as Chrissy scowled at Stephanie, annoyed at the blonde for ruining her big reveal. Questions immediately began buzzing around Waverly’s head, had Nicole said something about their moment at the homestead? Did her friends know? Waverly felt the panic starting to knot in her chest, she wasn’t ready for this, she wasn’t prepared.

“How did you...?” She left the question hanging, hoping that neither of the other women noticed the hesitant nervousness in the voice.

“As I was trying to say,” Chrissy cast a sidelong glance at Stephanie before continuing. “Nicole was talking to Paul the other day in the office, I was just there to give my dad his lunch and I overheard them talking.”

“What about?”

“Nicole was mentioning an ex-girlfriend from Chicago, apparently it ended a few weeks before she came here, from the sounds of it the ex didn’t take kindly to Nicole up and moving to a small town.”

The rush of relief that flooded through Waverly at her friend’s words was enough to drain all of the tension out of her limbs.

“Did you know?”

“What?”

“Did you know she was a lesbian?” Stephanie repeated her question a little impatiently. “You two hang out occasionally did she ever mention anything?!”

Waverly’s mind flashed back instantly to the night of the storm, the image of Nicole’s face so close to hers, the feeling of her warm skin under Waverly’s palm, her breath on Waverly’s face.

“She never mentioned anything.” Waverly replied. “I mean; does it matter that she is?” the question was posed in as nonchalant a manner as she could muster but inside she was holding her breath.

“It doesn’t matter to me.” Chrissy shrugged.

“It’s weird is what it is.” Champ’s voice piped up from behind them, he’d obviously been eavesdropping.

“Shut up Champ.” Waverly growled.

“I’m just saying,” Champ grumbled into his drink, falling silent when Waverly threw a dark look his way.

“He’s right though it is a bit weird.” Waverly’s withering glare was turned on Stephanie who seemed unperturbed by it or didn’t notice it. “I mean, there must be a reason no man wants her.”

“Stephanie!” Waverly and Chrissy spoke at the same time outrage colouring their tones, even as behind them Champ mumbled “Exactly.”

“What?!” Stephanie’s voice was surprised but the twinkle in her eye gave her away. She was enjoying the reaction she was provoking in her friends too much. “She doesn’t look all that much like a lesbian either.”

“Stephanie do you _have_ to be so narrow minded?!” Chrissy groaned as Waverly rubbed her temple with one hand.

Stephanie didn’t reply to Chrissy, instead she backed away from the bar, a satisfied smirk on her face. “Must dash ladies, I’m being taken shopping.“ with a patronising wiggle of her fingers she was gone.

“Sometimes I wonder why we’re friends?” Chrissy shook her head in disbelief.

“Small town, limited options.” Waverly grunted in response as she fiercely wiped a glass clean. This was precisely why she had been holding back from telling anyone about her newly discovered feelings, girls like Stephanie Jones. Girls who pounced on anything different about someone and used it to belittle and ridicule them.

“So, Waverly, I was wondering if one night...”

“No Champ.” Waverly interrupted him before the sentence even had time to develop, and without looking up from what she was doing.

“You didn’t even let me...”

“Answers still no.” Waverly growled. Champ seemed to finally take the hint and slunk away from the bar to join his friends at a table near the back of the bar.

“You have to admit, he is persistent.” Chrissy snorted.

“Persistently annoying.” Waverly grumbled. “Can I get you a drink?”

“Wine please.” Chrissy grinned, settling into one of the bar stools and resting her chin on one hand. “So what do you think about it?”

“About what?” Waverly played dumb, attention still fixed on the glass that she was cleaning, even though it was practically sparkling.

“Don’t pretend you don’t know. About Nicole, did you really not suspect anything?”

“It wasn’t really something I thought about.” Waverly replied carefully as she poured Chrissy her glass of wine. “It doesn’t make a difference to me who she dates.”

“Nor me.” Chrissy agreed immediately.

Waverly heard Gus calling her from the back and excused herself to see what the older woman wanted. When she returned Chrissy was staring sat where she had left her, a contemplative look on her face.

“She’s quite hot.” her friend mused. “If I swung that way I think she’d definitely be my type.”

Waverly looked up from where she was cleaning the tap. “Really?”

“Oh yes, the uniform is very nice.” Chrissy smirked. “Maybe I’ll see if she’s open to the idea.” She offered Waverly a wink.

Even though she knew her friend was joking Waverly couldn’t help the hot flash of jealously that flared in her chest. She had no right to be possessive over Nicole she knew that, but she couldn’t help the rush of anger that she felt towards the other woman at the idea of her and Nicole together in any capacity.

Contrary to what she had said Waverly had had her suspicions that Nicole was gay, her charm was a little too flirtatious and her stares a little too lingering at times. Then of course there was the almost kiss, although Waverly herself could attest to the fact that you didn’t need to be gay to kiss a woman…or sleep with them.

She had to admit though, knowing for a fact that Nicole was gay had somehow, impossibly, made her even more attractive to Waverly. Her confidence, the way she carried herself, her gentle but oddly sensual nature and the fact that she was clearly confident in who she was, and unashamed had Waverly respecting the woman in a way she hadn’t before. There was no way it could be easy coming to a small town and being so open about your sexuality, even if she wasn’t shouting it from the rooftops it wasn’t something she tried to hide.

If she had the guts Waverly would have spoken to her about her one-night stand.

“Waverly?”

“Huh?” Waverly came back to the present but a jolt as Chrissy shook her arm.

“What are you daydreaming about?” Chrissy asked with a sly smile. “Anyone I know?”

“No, I was thinking about a book I need to source for my paper.” Waverly said hurriedly.

“Well, if that’s the way you look when you think about books, we _definitely_ need to get you out more often!” Chrissy chuckled.

“I do fine.” Waverly defended.

“No more plans for passionate one night stands then? Was that who you were thinking about?”

“Please shut up and drink your wine!” Waverly begged.

“I’ll do that and you can get back to daydreaming about your mysterious stranger.”

“I hate you.”

* * *

The police station was a building that Waverly was very familiar with, over the years she had bailed Wynonna out more times than she cared to count. There had been a particularly rough period where she had been there every weekend, dragging a very resigned Wynonna out of the cells and promising Nedley it wouldn’t happen again, even though they all knew that the circle would start again in a few days.

Wynonna’s misdemeanours seemed to have subsided of late and Waverly couldn’t help but wonder how much that was down to Purgatory’s newest officer. Nicole it seemed was willing to turn a blind eye and keep Wynonna out of trouble where others might have just thrown her straight into a cell.

When she received the text at the end of her shift from her sister asking her to meet her at the station Waverly had immediately assumed that she had been arrested, it would not be the first time Wynonna had managed to sneak her phone into the cell to text her sister to come and get her. Her fears were placated a moment later when a second text through proclaiming that no, she had not gotten herself arrested she just needed a ride back to the homestead.

When she arrived at the police station a few moments later she was greeted at the front desk by Officer Paul Smith.

“Afternoon Waverly, you here to pick up Wynonna?”

“Yeah, for once not from a cell.”

Paul chuckled. “First time for everything, she’s in there.” He gestured through one of the doorways. “Watching the...ah...fight.”

“Fight?” Waverly’s brow creased in a frown as the sounds of raised voices reached her ears. Crossing to the doorway she peered into the next room, her eyebrows raising at the scene in front of her.

The raised voices belonged to the two most unlikely people. Nicole and Dolls.

Dolls cut an intimidating figure, his solid body and stern eyes were usually enough to send most people who questioned him scurrying away. His job involved a lot of secrecy, hiding away in his office and very rarely interacting with anyone in the office. Because of this there was a deep suspicion amongst the officers of Purgatory towards the Deputy Marshall, something that Nedley had done nothing to stamp out. The sheriff did not like the big wigs from the city coming into his town and telling him what to do, especially someone who wouldn’t even tell him why he was here.

Most people wouldn’t dream of going toe to toe with Dolls, but it appeared that Nicole was not most people. She had drawn herself up to her full height, which put her an inch or two above Dolls, her eyes blazing as she stared him down, her hands resting in their usually position on her belt, gripping the leather tightly causing the muscles in her forearms to clench tightly. It was an impressive display.

It took Waverly a moment to focus on what was actually being said.

“...and as you’ve been told, this information is classified. My eyes only.” Dolls’ tone was one that was used to being obeyed, without question.

“But that’s stupid when your ‘classified’ information is stopping us from doing our jobs!” Nicole shot back.

“You do not have the clearance to know what I’m working on Officer.” Dolls replied, the volume of his voice giving away that he was close to anger.

“But we’ve all guessed what you’re working on. You only take away the gang related cases, the ones that we’re trying to solve.” Nicole shook her head in exasperation.

Their argument had gathered an audience, Wynonna was sat on a table, legs swinging over the side as she watched with glee, obviously happy to be on the side-lines of an argument for a change. A doughnut was clutched in one hand and the elder Earp had powdered sugar on her nose, not that she noticed, her eyes were fixed in the scene in front of her.

Nedley was standing in the doorway near Waverly, his arms crossed over his chest and a slightly apprehensive look on his face. Waverly knew for a fact that outside Paul was craning his ears, too scared to come in but too interested not to eavesdrop.

“You are very close to overstepping the line.” Dolls took a step towards Nicole, clearly in an attempt to force her to back down, but Nicole stood her ground, refusing to move an inch. Surprise flitted across Dolls face for a second before he managed to recompose his features.

“How can we be expected to keep the people of this town safe if you’re withholding information from us?”

“It is my prerogative to share only the information I deem it necessary you have.”

“That’s such bureaucratic crap!”

“Ohhhh.” Wynonna murmured, all eyes in the room swivelled to fix on her. “Oh sorry, don’t mind me.” Shrugging her shoulders in surrender she took another large bite of her doughnut.

“Careful.” Dolls warned. “I can have you done for treason.”

“For what? Trying to do my job? For trying to stop the gangs terrorising our streets? Last time I looked there’s just one of you, how exactly were you planning on doing anything with your ‘classified’ information without our help?”

“The Black Badge Division has more resources than you realise, and influence.” It was the first time Waverly had heard him mention his divisions name. “You would do well to remember that.”

“Are you threatening me?” Nicole’s face darkened. “For trying to be a good cop?! People are getting hurt and I want to find out why and stop it.”

“Why don’t you just stick to helping old ladies across the street and making sure the drunks get home ok or whatever it is female rookies do, Officer Haught.”

Everyone in the room, even Dolls realised the words were a big mistake the second they were uttered.

“I...” Dolls was clearly trying to backtrack but now it was Nicole’s turn to step forward, her face as hard as steel.

Waverly knew she had to do something before this turned nasty, moving forward quickly she placed herself between Nicole and Dolls, one hand coming up to rest gently on Nicole’s forearm.

Nicole looked down at the contact, brown eyes, swirling with anger, frustration and hurt met her own, the moment they did so all of the negative emotions seemed to melt away.

“Come on let’s get you out of here.” Waverly murmured, squeezing her arm softly.

“Officer...”

“No.” Waverly cut Dolls off as she started to pull Nicole away. “I don’t think you should say anymore.”

“Take a break Officer Haught.” Nedley spike up from his place by the door. “You too Deputy Marshall.”

“You can take me home.” Wynonna piped up before Dolls could respond, hopping off the table she gestured for him to follow her. “That was a really dumb move.” Waverly heard her sister tell Dolls as she dragged Nicole out of the room.

* * *

 

Waverly didn’t stop walking until they were on the outskirts of town. She kept hold of Nicole’s hand the whole way, feeling the other woman’s anger returning as Nicole’s grip got tighter and tighter.

“Are you ok?” Waverly tentatively asked when they had been standing in silence for several minutes.

Nicole didn’t answer right away, she was staring dead ahead, out into the countryside, her jaw set in a hard line.

“It’s the same.” Her answer when it finally came was flat, in a tone that Waverly had never heard before.

“What’s the same?” Waverly was almost afraid to ask.

“The same fucking assumptions.” Nicole had found her voice, it was loud now, and the anger that had been present back at the station had returned full force. Waverly didn’t respond immediately, sensing that Nicole needed to rant, her assumption proved to be right a second later.

“I mean, just everywhere this same one idea. What? That because I’m a woman, there’s obviously no way that I can do my job as well as the men!” Nicole paced up and down, hands wringing together. “I have to work ten times harder than anyone else to prove that I deserve to be in this job, I busted my ass all the way through college _and_ the academy just to get here and I’m placed in a small town in the middle of nowhere _despite_ coming top of my class!”

Waverly was at a loss of what to say, this was a side of Nicole she had never seen, something she never envisioned she would have to see.

“I’m sorry.”

She said the only thing she could think of, the words coming out as a mere whisper.

“Yeah me too.” Nicole sighed and stopped her pacing, rubbing her face with her hands she sighed again, heavier this time. “I’m just so tired. I’m tired of being passed over, being doubted, harassed.”

“I know it sucks.” Waverly took a couple of steps forward.

“Sucks doesn’t really cover it.” Nicole let out a bark of laughter, the sound was rough and Waverly winced a little. “I’m sorry.” Nicole said a moment later, she had clearly noticed. “None of this is your fault, I shouldn’t be taking this out on you.”

“You’re not taking anything out on me.” Waverly moved further forward. “You’re allowed to vent, what happened back there was intense and upsetting. You can talk to me.”

“Thanks.” Nicole ran a hand over her hair, fingers digging slightly into her scalp.

“I know it’s probably not something you want to hear right now, but I don’t think Dolls really thinks like that. He wouldn’t have been able to speak more than two words to Wynonna if he did.”

Nicole chuckled. “I can imagine that your sister doesn’t suffer fools gladly.”

“Suffer them! She eats them for bloody breakfast!” Waverly laughed. “But seriously, what he said was completely out of order, and completely wrong. You’re an amazing cop.” She reached out and took hold of one of Nicole’s hands, the redhead’s eyes flickering down at the motion.

“You really think so?”

“Yes.” Waverly took another step forward. “You’re kind, you’re good, you care about the people of this town, _all_ of the people in this town, not many other cops would take time out of their own day to bring a drunk Earp home.”

“Well a drunk Earp is always good entertainment, so I’ve heard.”

“What do you mean…” Waverly trailed off with a gasp as Nicole gave her a smirk. “Shorty told you the karaoke story didn’t he?!”

“I might have persuaded him to tell me one day when you weren’t working. I definitely am going to need a rendition of ‘Milkshake’ at some point in the very near future.”

“That is one thing I can assure you is _never_ going to happen.” Waverly could feel herself blushing and tried to turn away to hide her embarrassment. She was stopped by a gentle tug on her hand and looking up found Nicole smiling warmly at her.

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For making me feel like moving to this town was actually a good idea, for making me smile”

Waverly’s blush intensified. “Well you deserve to feel good about yourself, because you are…a pretty special person.” Waverly could hear the slight waver in her voice as she thought about the last time they had talked like this.

It seemed Nicole was thinking something along the same lines too because she ducked her head down, staring at her shoes, the silence that descended was tinged with awkwardness.

Waverly did the only thing she could think of to break it, reaching forward she wrapped her arms around Nicole’s waist, tugging her forward into a tight hug.

The taller woman didn’t react for a second, clearly caught off guard by the sudden show of affection, but after a couple of seconds her body relaxed and hugged Waverly back, arms going around her shoulders and her cheek resting against the top of Waverly’s head.

“Thank you.” Nicole muttered again and Waverly could feel her voice vibrating her chest by her ear, along with the slow comforting sound of Nicole’s heartbeat, the brunette couldn’t help the sigh that left her lips as her arms tightened around the other woman.

“Anytime.” She breathed.

They stayed this way for several minutes, neither wanting to move. Waverly’s eyes drifted closed and she concentrated on the slow pitch of Nicole’s breathing, the slight rise and fall of her chest beneath her cheek.  

It was Waverly thought, the most soothing thing in the world.

But, like all precious moments this one was, invariably, broken by the buzzing of her phone. Reluctantly Waverly pulled back and fished the offending item out of her pocket.

“It’s Wynonna. She wants me back at the homestead.”

“I should get back to work, I’m sure Nedley is wondering where I got to.” Nicole replied.

“Are you going to be ok?” Waverly asked as they started the walk back to the police station.

“I’ll be fine.” Nicole assured her. “I just needed some time to cool off and some kind words. You gave me both, so I’m in your debt Miss Earp.” She gave a mock bow of her head in Waverly’s direction causing the smaller girl to chuckle and shove her gently.

“I’ll be sure to remember that.” She promised.

“I hope you do.” Nicole murmured.

They parted ways at the police station and as Waverly started her jeep and headed for home she chanced a glance in the rear view mirror, Nicole stood in the doorway of the station, a wide smile on her face and hand raised in farewell.

The image caused a warm fuzzy feeling to blossom in Waverly’s chest, a feeling that lasted the whole journey home, the smile still splitting her face as she pulled into the homestead’s yard, behind a car she didn’t recognise.

“Wynonna I’m home!” she called jovially as she opened the front door, still smiling. As she hung up her coat she heard the floorboards creak behind her. “Hey, who’s car is that out…”

The smile died as Waverly turned and saw the figure standing behind her.

“Hello Waverly.” Bobo smiled. “Did you miss me?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Bobo and Willa are here, things are going to get interesting. Let me know what you thought in the comments, hope to have another chapter up early next weekend. My weekend is free for the first time in weeks so I want to get a lot of writing done! I'm on Tumblr if people wanna come and chat! Until next time!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! The bad news is I've come down with a killer cold this week and feel like death warmed up, the good news is that a day off work gave me the time I needed to finish off this chapter! Now that I have finished it I'm going to go and lie down for a while! Please enjoy and thank you for all the nice comments on the last chapter.

“Hello Waverly.” Bobo smiled. “Did you miss me?”

For a moment Waverly was silent, the shock of seeing Bobo in her house rendering her speechless. The smile on Bobo’s face only grew as he watched her struggle.

“Isn’t that sweet, you did miss me.”

His next words snapped Waverly out of her daze, a scowl darkening her features before she pushed past him and into the kitchen.

Wynonna was standing by the counter, a bottle of whiskey in her hand, a nervous look on her face, as soon as Waverly stomped into the room she immediately held up the bottle. Waverly snatched it from her hand and took a long swig, wincing sharply as the liquor burnt the back of her throat.

“What the hell Wynonna?!” she hissed, aware of Bobo standing outside the door. “You said a couple of days!”

“They just showed up out of the blue!” Wynonna hissed back, waiting for Waverly to take another large drink before reclaiming her bottle.

“You could have warned me!”

“I texted you, I didn’t want you to freak out whilst you were still out.”

Waverly sighed. “Where are they staying?” seeing Wynonna’s hesitation she groaned. “Here?!”

“Willa didn’t really give me much choice, she just barged upstairs with the bags. She’s up there now, unpacking.”

“What do we do?” Waverly whispered.

“We do what Earp’s do best.” Wynonna muttered. “We drink.” She punctuated her point with a long chug from the bottle, handing it to Waverly with a slight grimace.

The tell-tale creaking of the middle step on the stairs told them that Willa was no longer in the bedroom, glancing at each other briefly the two younger Earp’s turned their attention to the door, both steeling themselves internally.

Willa appeared a few seconds later, Bobo just behind her, the smirk he’d been wearing in the hallway still present.

“Waverly!” Willa drawled, swiftly crossing the room she gave her younger sister a brief hug. “You look well! Have you put on weight?”

Waverly gritted her teeth, eyes flitting to Wynonna, who gave a slight shake of her head.

“You look great too Willa.” She replied, a smile pulling reluctantly at her mouth.

“No hug for your brother-in-law?” Bobo stepped forward, his arms outstretched, both Wynonna and Waverly looked at him like he had snakes for arms. “You wound me.” Bobo placed his hands over his heart, smile still in place.

“I see this place is still as decrepit as ever.” Willa was moving around the kitchen, running a finger over the surfaces and holding it up to inspect it. “You haven’t changed anything?”

“We like it the way it is.” Waverly replied. “The way mom liked it.”

Willa scoffed at her words. “I guess if you like living in a hole then it suits its purpose.”

“You guys must be hungry!” Wynonna spoke up before Waverly could deliver the scathing remark that had formed on her tongue. “Or do you want to go straight to bed? You must be tired after a day’s travelling?”

“I could do with some food.” Willa replied, Bobo nodding his agreement whilst he inspected under his fingernails.

“Wave?”

“I think I’m going to head to bed.” Waverly said flatly pushing away from the counter. “I had a long day today and I have a busy one tomorrow.” Without waiting for any answers, knowing if she stayed Wynonna would try to protest, she brushed past Willa and Bobo, heading for her room as quickly as possible.

**XXXXXX**

It took Waverly a few moments the next morning to recall why she was in such a bad mood, the murmur of soft voices from downstairs brought the events of the previous evening back.

Wynonna, Willa and Bobo were all seated around the kitchen table when Waverly came down half an hour later.

“Morning baby girl.” Wynonna shot her a bright smile that looked a little strained. “You hungry?”

“Yeah.” Waverly took a seat at the table next to Wynonna, across from Willa and Bobo. “Thanks.” She glanced up as Wynonna placed a plate full of food in front of her, her sister may have been totally inept at most meals but the one thing she did excel at was pancakes.

“So Waverly, Wynonna was telling us about your fellowship.” Bobo broke the silence that had descended as they all started eating. “It all sounds very interesting.”

“Thank you.” Waverly answered warily, she had learnt a long time ago that an interested Bobo was a dangerous Bobo. “What have you two been up to?”

“Working mostly.” Willa replied. “Bobo’s been expanding his business and I’ve been working towards partner in my law firm.”

“That’s great Willa.” Waverly forced a smile. “What area is your business in Bobo?”

“Oh, I think the logistics of my business would be a little over your pretty head.” Bobo chuckled, ignoring the dark look directed his way by his wife at calling Waverly pretty, and the scowls from both Wynonna and Waverly for his patronising tone.

“So Willa, partner? That’s interesting, you must have some big cases coming up then?” Wynonna was desperate to turn the conversation elsewhere, mainly because Waverly looked like she was ready to throw her coffee across the table onto Bobo.

“Yes there’s a few, if I win them I’m a certainty for partner. It’s about time someone who knew what they are doing took over.” Willa gave a disdainful sniff. “I’m surprised you’ve decided to stay in Purgatory Waverly, thought you’d want to be out of this town.”

“Yeah, well it wasn’t the right time yet.” Waverly replied, not looking up from her plate. “Besides I needed to be around here for my area of study.”

“Ahhh yes, the famous Wyatt Earp.” Bobo snickered around a mouthful of food.

“I don’t understand why out of all the things you could have studied you decided not only to do history, but to study our family!” Willa shook her head, the barb causing Waverly to grit her teeth in frustration. Willa had never liked history, had never taken much interest in it other than what she needed to further he own career, she had certainly never understood Waverly’s fascination with their ancestor.

“History is important.” She insisted. “And I think Wyatt’s legacy is important for all of us too, it helps us work out where it is we fit in the world.”

“I know exactly where I fit in the world.” Willa retorted. “As far away from Purgatory as is possible.”

“Why did you come back then?” Waverly muttered, just loud enough for Willa to hear.

The eldest Earp’s response was quickly drowned out by Wynonna loudly asking if anyone wanted whipped cream, before spraying liberal amounts on everyone’s plates, regardless of whether or not they had said yes.

Bobo had watched the entire exchange between the sisters with an odd, half smile on his face. It was a look Waverly recognised, she had seen it enough in her childhood. He was about to rock the boat.

“Isn’t this nice.” Bobo grinned, a smile not shared by any other occupant of the table. “A nice _family_ breakfast.” His eyes flitted ever so briefly to Waverly as he added. “Well, almost.”

Wynonna was on her feet in an instant. “Out!”

“What?” Bobo feigned ignorance, even as Waverly rose to her feet.

“You know damn well what.” Wynonna growled, hands planted flat on the table.

“I was referring to myself, what else would I be talking about?” Bobo was barely containing his smirk.

“I want you out of my house. You are _not_ staying here.”

“Wynonna!” Willa was on her feet now. “You can’t kick my husband out of this house!”

“I can and I will.” Wynonna looked to Willa, eyes hard. “Not when he talks about Waverly like that…again.”

“He didn’t mean anything by it. He was just joking, weren’t you Bobo?”

Bobo shrugged, a mocking apologetic smile on his face. “I did not mean any offence, I was just having a joke with Waverly, just like we used to.”

Wynonna moved around the table, leaning forward she put her face close to Bobo’s eyes staring him down. “I mean it. I. Want. You. Out.” She spoke slowly, deliberately.

“For god’s sake!” Willa scoffed. “This is ridiculous, Bobo was just joking around, it’s not his fault Waverly can’t let go of the past.” Her words were spoken with a venomous glance in Waverly’s direction.

“This is not up for discussion. You can either stay here Willa, or leave with him. It’s your choice, but he is not staying.” Waverly rarely heard Wynonna’s voice as frosty as it was now, certainly never directed at Willa.

“Baby, it’s fine. I’ll go.” Bobo stood up abruptly, sending his chair skidding across the floor. “You can bring my stuff to the usual place.”

“Fine.” Willa huffed as Bobo made his way out into the hallway following Wynonna. 

Wynonna unlatched the door and threw it open, gesturing dramatically. Bobo sauntered slowly through the door, turning to look at Waverly as he did so.

“I do hope we’re still friends.”

“Bite me.” Waverly shot back bitterly.

Bobo chuckled, spinning on his heel he made his way out into the yard, where his chuckle deepened to a loud laugh.

Waverly and Wynonna shot each other confused looks, hurrying outside to see the cause for Bobo’s mirth.

“Well, well, well.” Bobo had his hands hooked into his belt loops. “If it isn’t Doc Holliday.”

“Bobo Del Rey.” Doc stood in the middle of the yard, looking at Bobo like he was a snake he’d just found in his boot.

“I should have realised you’d be sniffing around this homestead.” Bobo said silkily casting a look back to Waverly and Wynonna. “Like the good little…puppy dog that you are.”

Doc didn’t say anything, instead he glanced to Wynonna. “I heard that these two had arrived so I came over to offer my assistance should you need it.”

“Awww how sweet. Coming to save the damsels into distress from the big bad monster.”

“I do believe you have been asked to vacate these premises.”

“Tell me, does it get exhausting talking like that all time. ‘I do believe that this must be mighty tiring talking like I’m from the 19th century all the goddamn time’” Bobo laughed loudly, slapping his knee for effect.

“Mock me at your peril Bobo.” At Doc’s soft words the smile dropped from Bobo’s face and he strode forward, not stopping until his nose brushed against Doc’s moustache.

“Was that a threat?” his voice had lowered to a growl.

“It was merely a caution.” Doc replied stonily.

“I do not respond well to threats. They make me angry, and nobody, I repeat _nobody_ likes me when I’m angry.” Bobo rubbed his beard, looking Doc up and down. “Now, I’m going to let that one threat slide on account of there being ladies present, but next time…” he bit down sharply, causing his teeth to clack together. “...I might not be so generous.”

“Just leave Bobo.” Wynonna called. “Before I go and get Peacemaker.”

“You have me trembling in my boots Miss Earp.” Bobo stepped away from Doc and headed towards his car. “I’m leaving now; you can go back to your pancakes.” He started the engine and revved the car sharply, sending gravel spinning in all directions.

“I hope you’re happy!” Willa snapped as the car roared out of the yard.

“I am actually.” Wynonna replied. “I’ve accomplished so much and breakfast isn’t even over yet.”

“God, you can be so childish sometimes!” Willa stormed back into the house, bumping her shoulder into Waverly as she passed.

“Says you!” Wynonna called after her, before turning a concerned gaze to Waverly. “You ok baby girl?”

“Yeah I’m fine.”

“Coming back in for breakfast?” Wynonna jerked her head towards the door.

“Actually, I need to head off to the university. I have a lot of work to do today.” Waverly replied.

“That’s probably a good idea, she’ll calm down soon enough.”

“Yeah, we’ll see. Who knows maybe we’ll be lucky and she’ll go and stay with Bobo.” Waverly replied heading back into the house.

“Oh you know Willa; she never likes to make people feel lucky.” Wynonna sighed. “Is it too early for a drink?”

“Yes!”

* * *

Waverly had never been more grateful for her small office than she was that morning. Usually when she entered the department she spent a few minutes greeting everyone, but on this particular morning she headed straight for the relative sanctuary of her office, offering only minimal conversation to those who stopped her.

Once at her desk she slumped forward, head falling into her hands and a heavy sigh leaving her, she hated that just being in the same room as Willa and Bobo for mere minutes had the capability to leave her feeling like a child. That every time she saw their mocking smiles she could feel herself retreating a little bit further back towards the timid child she had been, the child she had worked so hard to change.

Wynonna had been the only thing keeping her running from the room. Truth be told Waverly had been a little apprehensive about how much Wynonna would stick up for her in front of Willa, after all it had been some years since all three sisters had been in a room together and Wynonna had made no secret of the fact that she had missed her elder sister. But it appeared her worries had been unfounded because Wynonna had come through for her again, Waverly would never have expected her to actually chuck Bobo out, but it had given her no small amount of satisfaction to see him shown the door.

As cathartic as that had been it didn’t detract from the fact that Bobo still knew exactly what to say to press all of Waverly’s buttons. He knew, even after all these years, that those words could affect her in ways that no others could, that despite the irrefutable proof shown her by her mother, her father and her sister, that there was always a part of Waverly that didn’t feel like an Earp. A part of her that sometimes woke her up in the middle of the night with the question.

_What if?_

“Shit.” The uncharacteristic expletive slipped from her mouth into the quiet of her office.

“Everything alright Waverly?” Professor Harrison’s voice in the doorway made her start in her seat.

“Oh yes, everything’s fine. Sorry about that.” She rose from her desk as Professor Harrison moved into the room.

“No, no it’s fine.” He waved away her apology. “We all have those mornings, I just came to check in.” he settled on the edge of her desk and shot her a kind smile. “How are you getting on?”

“I’m loving it.” Waverly replied immediately, and with as much conviction as she could muster. “I cannot thank you enough for the opportunity you’ve given me, it’s only been a few weeks and I feel like I’ve learnt so much already!”

“I am very glad to hear that. I’ve been hearing nothing but glowing reports from your colleagues, apparently you’re a joy to have around, and that if early indications are to go by your work is of an incredible standard. Some of the most thorough work we’ve ever seen.” The professor sank down into the chair on the other side of her desk and crossed his legs.

“Thank you very much sir, that’s, well quite frankly a relief to hear.” Waverly sighed, the incident that morning with Willa and Bobo had once again had her questioning her own self-worth, and hearing glowing praise from someone outside of her family, someone who was judging her not on her looks, or her family, but on her brain, on her academic prowess. It sent a warm feeling around her body, one that chased away the icy chill that had set in at breakfast.

“You should not doubt your ability my dear,” Professor Harrison. “You’re a very remarkable individual and you’re going to be very successful, I can feel it.”

His words reminded Waverly of what Nicole had said the night of the storm, the night of the almost kiss, not all that long ago, but in that moment feeling like a lifetime.

“Thank you, I hope to be able to live up to the high praise you have given me.” She replied.

“I have every faith that you will.” The professor reached out and laid a book on her desk. “I came across this and thought it would be of some use to you, a very rare book that one.”

Waverly reached out and picked the book up carefully, turning it over in her hands. It appeared to be a short written history of the gangs of Purgatory, the ones that Wyatt Earp and other Marshall’s would have rallied against.

“Thank you, this looks like it’ll be incredibly useful.”

“You’re very welcome, now I will leave you to work, I’m sure you have lots to do without me taking up your time.”

“Thank you Professor. Have a good day.” As Professor Harrison left the room Waverly was already turning the pages of the book in front of her, eyes scanning eagerly over the text inside.

One word in particular caught her attention on the third page. ‘Revenants’, pausing in her speed read to take a close look Waverly traced the paper with her index finger, struggling slightly to decipher the complex script.

Everyone in Purgatory knew the word Revenants, the gang had been a strong presence in the town for at least as long as Waverly had been alive. She remembered well the stories her father would tell of his dealings with them, Ward had hated the gang with a passion and had dedicated a large portion of his life trying to hunt them down and disband them. It had never been proved but most people were certain that his death had been at hands of the gang, desperate to put a stop to his meddling.

Waverly had always assumed that the gang was a fairly recent one, but looking at this record it seemed that the Revenants had been operating in and around Purgatory for best part of 200 years, their members making up a large portion of the outlaws that Wyatt Earp had killed.

“Interesting.” Waverly mumbled as she turned the page, she made a point to relay some of this information to Dolls, if he was as Nicole claimed looking into gang activity and wanting to shut them down this information might come in useful.

With fresh resolve Waverly set about reading the rest of the book, the argument with Bobo and Willa pushed to the back of her mind.

For now.

* * *

“Jesus Waverly! When did you get so good at pool?!” Wynonna exclaimed as Waverly expertly potted the black for the second consecutive game.

“Most of my ‘dates’ with Champ were spent here.” Waverly replied leaning on her cue. “There wasn’t much else to do other than play pool or make out.”

“Ewww.” Wynonna wrinkled her nose. “There is an image I do not want to think about.”

Waverly chuckled and leaning over started to pot Wynonna’s left over balls. “He wasn’t all that bad in the bedroom either, sometimes he was almost...”

“I am begging you for the sake of my sanity do _not_ finish that sentence!“ Wynonna squeezed her eyes shut and stuffed her fingers in her ears.

“You’re so easy.” Waverly giggled. “Another drink?”

“Please! I need to bleach that image from my mind.” Wynonna handed Waverly her empty glass with a shudder. 

“Same again please Gus.” Waverly said brightly as she placed the glasses on the bar.

“Two Earp’s drinking in my bar. I’d better not have any trouble tonight.” Gus fixed Waverly with a stern stare, albeit one with a fond undertone.

“Of course not Gus!” Waverly gave her aunt the most innocent smile she could muster. “When have I ever been trouble?”

“Not by yourself.“ Gus muttered placing two shots of whiskey and two beers on the bar. “You two wouldn’t be hiding from anyone back at the homestead now would you?”

“Oh, you heard?” Waverly knocked back her shot.

“Sweetie, the whole town knows already. There’s nobody around these parts who wears a coat as outrageous as Bobo.” Gus replied swiping the empty glass. “Are they at the homestead?”

“Willa is. Wynonna kicked Bobo out this morning.”

“Good for her.” Gus shot her other niece a proud look, one that Wynonna returned with bemusement. “Dare I ask what he did to incur the wrath of Wynonna?” 

Waverly started down at her hands, fingers knotting together before she answered. “He brought _it_ up.” She mumbled.

Gus’ face darkened at her muttered admission, she could still remember, even all these years later an inconsolable Waverly crawling onto her lap, tears streaming down her face as she asked Gus if she wasn’t an Earp. Gus had believed her heart had broken in that second, no words able to comfort the small girl on her lap who at such a young age had been deceived, played with, all for the amusement of one person.

She had never forgiven Willa for marrying the bastard.

“You must not let him get to you, you hear me Waverly Earp?”

“I’ll try not to.” Waverly sighed.

“Not try, do.” Gus pointed an index finger at Waverly. “You just focus on your stuff, that fellowship you’ve got. You’re on the right track girl.”

“Thanks Gus.”

“Anytime.” Gus gave her a wink before moving away to serve an old man who had been glaring at them for the last couple of minutes, waving his empty glass around impatiently.

Waverly made her way back to Wynonna with their drinks, handing her sister her shot and beer. “Wynonna! That’s gross!” she said immediately as Wynonna dropped her shot in her drink and downed half of it.

“Delicious.” Wynonna smacked her lips before belching loudly. “Another game of pool?”

“Only if you’re ready to get your butt kicked again.” Waverly retorted, picking up the pool cue she twirled it expertly between her hands.

“Oh please, I was going easy on you the last two games, scoping you out.” Wynonna attempted to replicate the gesture, but the cue slipped out of her hands, clattering to the floor and narrowly missing her feet.

“Of course Wynonna.” Waverly hit the white ball into the assembled triangle, sending two stripes spinning away into corner pockets. “Loser buys next round?”

“I hate this game.” Wynonna grumbled half an hour later as she pulled out a wad of notes for the third time.

“I don’t!” Waverly bounced over to the bar as Gus poured them both another drink.

“That’s it I’m not playing you anymore.” Wynonna handed Gus the money and downed her shot.

“Don’t be a sore loser Wynonna!” Waverly whinged as she followed her sister back to the pool table. “Besides, if you stop playing who’s going to buy my drinks.”

“How about…” Wynonna scanned the bar eagerly before grinning wildly. “…Haughtstuff!”

Waverly’s head whipped around at her sisters nickname for Nicole, sure enough the officer stood in the middle of the bar, it seemed that Wynonna had interrupted her mid stride and she was standing still, not sure what to do.

“What?” her voice was a little scared and Waverly didn’t blame her, Wynonna was looking at the other woman with a demented grin on her face.

“Play Waverly at pool!” Wynonna bounded over to Nicole and before the redhead could so much as open her mouth to protest she was being steered over to the pool table and a cue pressed into her hand.

“But I…”

“You play, I drink!” Wynonna instructed.

“Here, have my beer.” Waverly pushed her glass into Nicole’s hand who still looked a little stunned. “I’ll break.”

Nicole finally seemed to regain herself as Waverly potted her first three balls. “Woah, you’re good!”

“I’ve been known to dabble.” Waverly giggled as she lined up her next shot, this one was calculated wrong and the ball intended for the pocket bounced off the edge. “Damn.”

“Ok, my turn.” Moving around the table Nicole bobbed down and observed the table for a moment before straightening up and quickly potting one of her balls.

“Good start.” Waverly complimented her.

“Thanks,” Nicole didn’t look up from her next shot as she spoke, easily potting two balls, one more found its way into a pocket before she missed.

“Beginner’s luck.” Wynonna grunted from her stool as Nicole smirked at her.

“Nothing lucky about it.” the officer countered, leaning on her cue.

It was then that Waverly noticed that Nicole wasn’t in her uniform, she didn’t know how she hadn’t spotted it. Instead Nicole was wearing a red and blue checked flannel shirt, open over a white tank top and complemented by a pair of washed out blue jeans. It was such a simple, unassuming outfit.

It was also one of the sexiest things Waverly had ever seen.

_Whoa! That’s definitely the whiskey talking!_

Pulling herself away from her thoughts that were becoming increasingly not so innocent Waverly attempted to concentrate on her next shot, this however was proving difficult with Nicole watching her, dimples on full display as she observed Waverly trying to line up her shot.

“You ok there Waverly?”

“I’m fine!”

Her next shot was wild, missing the ball she wanted completely and instead sending one of Nicole’s into the top pocket.

“That was awful!” Wynonna snorted 

“Shut up Wynonna!” Waverly growled as Nicole shot her a smug look as she sauntered around the table, a slight swagger in her walk.

It didn’t take long for Nicole to dispatch of her final two balls before moving onto the black.

“Hey Waverly?” the smaller Earp looked up quickly, praying she hadn’t been caught not so discreetly checking out the officer’s cleavage.

“Huh?”

“Make mine a beer.” Nicole winked as without looking she sent the black ball neatly into the middle left pocket.

Ignoring Wynonna’s delighted cackles Waverly stomped over to the bar. Shorty had taken over from Gus and had clearly been watching the whole game.

“Our new officer has some talent.” He remarked as he filled some glasses.

“She sure does.” Waverly murmured as she watched Nicole talk to Wynonna. The two of them were laughing and joking about something Wynonna had said.

“It’s good to see you’ve made a new friend, I know options can be limited in this town.” Shorty set their drinks down.

“You can say that again.” Waverly replied, the conversation with Stephanie Jones still fresh in her mind.

When she returned with the drinks Wynonna was staring at her phone with a slight frown.

“Something wrong?”

“It’s Willa.” Wynonna replied as she tapped out a reply. “Wants to grab a coffee. I don’t drink coffee after midday!”

“Looks like you do now.”

“I’ll see you later.” Wynonna grunted grabbing her jacket.

“Rather you than me!”

“See you later Haughtstuff! Do me a favour and bear Waverly.” She slapped Nicole hard on the back as she went past, causing the beer that the other woman had been lifting to her mouth to slop down her front.

“Up for another game?“ Waverly asked as Nicole tried to wipe beer off her shirt in as dignified a manner as she could.

“Sure.” The smile sent her way caused Waverly’s heart to flutter in her chest and she was forced to hide her smile in her glass.

“So how are you? After yesterday?” Waverly ventured a moment later as Nicole broke.

“I’ve calmed down thank you, sorry you had to see me that way, I should have kept better control of my temper.”

“You have nothing to apologise for.” Waverly said immediately. “I’m glad you were able to open up to me.”

“Yeah, thank you for listening.” Nicole seemed to hesitate before carrying on. “Dolls came to see me this morning?”

“Did he?” Waverly took her first shot before straightening up. “Did he apologise.”

“Very profusely.” Nicole replied. “He can do a good apology I’ll give him that.”

“I’m glad to hear it.”

The played the next few shots in silence, only speaking to compliment the other on a particularly skilful shot, this game was evenly matched with both of them reaching the black.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you about something.”

“Oh yeah, what’s that?” Nicole regarded Waverly over her glass.

“Well…it’s about, errr, the other night…when you brought Wynonna back.” Waverly was staring down at her cue, focusing on dusting the tip with chalk, so she failed to notice the slight falling of Nicole’s face and the slight nervous wringing of her hands. “About what…almost happened.”

“Oh, yeah.”

Waverly looked up. “Yeah, I mean I guess, I was just wondering…” she trailed off and moved a little closer to Nicole.

“What Waverly?” Nicole murmured, swallowing hard.

“I was wondering, if…well…” another step and Waverly couldn’t believe she was having such a hard time getting the words out of her mouth, words were her things, words were something she could always ben relied on to have.

One more step and she was within touching distance. “…well…did you want to?” she finally blurted out.

Nicole took a deep breath, tongue darting out to wet her lips in a maddening gesture.

“Before I answer that, there’s something you need to know.” She replied, voice a little shaky.

“What’s that?” Waverly reached out and toyed with the edges of Nicole’s open shirt, dragging her a little closer, not sure where her new found confidence had come from.

Nicole took another long, shuddering breath.

“I know what you did!” whatever Nicole had been about to tell Waverly was cut off by an angry voice from next to them.

Turning to the source of the noise Waverly scowled when her eyes settled on Champ standing a few feet away from them, burly arms crossed against his chest and an accusatory look in his eyes.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Waverly reluctantly let Nicole’s shirt slip through her fingers.

“I know that you slept with someone the day we broke up!” the slight slurring of Champ’s words gave away the drinks he’d had.

“Where did you hear that?”

“Stephanie.” Champ spat, swaying slightly.

“Of course.” Waverly muttered, making a mental note to give Chrissy a slap upside the head the next time she saw her.

“Who was he?!” Champ demanded.

“I am not doing this with you here Champ.” Waverly moved away, aware that Nicole was shifting nervously against the pool table, she didn’t blame her, half the bar was watching their interaction.

“It’s someone I know!” Champ followed her. “Is it someone in this bar?!” he spun around wildly, eyes jumping from one person to the other.

“Champ!” Waverly hissed, grabbing him by the arm. “You’re embarrassing yourself!”

“Then just tell me who it was!”

“What I do, and who I do it with is none of your damn business!” Waverly growled.

“I think I deserve to know who it was!” Cham clamped a hand down on her shoulder as she made to turn around and walk away.

“Remove your hand.” The order came not from Waverly, but from Nicole, in a hard authoritative voice that Waverly hadn’t heard since the bar fight.

“Who the hell are you?!” Champ turned his bleary eyes on Nicole, looking her up and down.

“Someone who can have you arrested before you can say ‘cow tipping’.” Nicole responded coldly. Champ’s eyebrows furrowed as his brain tried to comprehend what was happening, but he did drop his hand from Waverly’s shoulder.

“I suggest you leave before you do something you’re going to regret.” Nicole carried on, Champ looked like he might argue but even he knew better than to go up against the icy stare that Nicole was giving him.

“Whatever.” He mumbled finally before slinking away, past Wynonna and Willa who were standing in the doorway.

“Whoa! Way to lay down the officer talk!” Wynonna snickered coming over to thump Nicole on the back again. “I think Chump’s more scared of you than he is me.”

“I severely doubt that.” Nicole snorted.

“How much of that did you see?” Waverly asked.

“Pretty much all of it.” Willa said, arching an eyebrow at her younger sister.

“What’s that look for?”

“Nothing, just didn’t have you pegged for the sleeping around type.” Willa replied.

“I don’t sleep around!” Waverly could feel all the anger from that morning returning full force.

“I didn’t realise you’d broken up with Champ.” Willa signalled Shorty to get her a drink. “Seems a bit of a silly move to me.”

“Why is it any of your business?” Waverly snapped.

“Temper, temper.” Willa tutted, the smirk on her face reminiscent of the ones that Waverly had seen time and time again in her childhood when her sister had managed to get under her skin. “I was just making an observation; you don’t need to throw a tantrum”

“Ugh!” Waverly had had enough, grabbing her jacket off a nearby stool she stormed out of the bar, ignoring Wynonna’s calls for her to come back.

Waverly didn’t stop walking, anger levels rising by the second as she was torn between going back to give Willa a piece of her mind and just walking out of town and not looking back.

“Waverly!” a voice behind her caused her to slow down, but not turn around. “Waverly come on.” Sighing heavily Waverly came to a stop and turned to find Nicole jogging to catch up with her. “Are you ok?”

“Yeah! I’m fine!” she ran a hand through her hair. “I love being harassed in my place of work by my ex-boyfriend in front of half the town, and then being made to feel bad about my personal life by a member of my family.”

“So that was your sister?” Nicole slipped her hands into the front pockets or her jeans and rocked back on her feet.

“Yep, that was Willa.” Waverly replied bitterly. “The bright star of the family!”

“I didn’t realise you had an older sister.”

“Yeah, she’s not high on my list of things to talk about.” Waverly laughed.

“I can’t imagine why; she seems like a delight!” Nicole’s voice dripped with sarcasm and Waverly couldn’t help the smile that stretched her lips despite her foul mood.

“You didn’t need to chase after me you know.”

“Well what kind of cop would I be ma’am if I didn’t go after young ladies who run off in the middle of the night to make sure they’re ok.”

“You’re off duty though.”

“When it comes to being a good cop, I’m never off duty.” Nicole flashed her a killer smile and Waverly felt the rest of her anger melt away, a feat that lately only Nicole seemed to be able to accomplish.

“Well, I thank you for your diligence then officer.” She smiled. “And I’m sorry you had to see all of that.”

“It’s ok. I get that family can sometimes be…a chore.”

“I just wish…” Waverly sighed. “…that she would stay away so I can keep pretending I don’t have an older sister.” She perched on a low wall. “Does that make me a terrible person?”

“The last thing you are,” Nicole came to sit next to her, “is a terrible person.”

“She just never seemed to like me,” Waverly continued, “when we were kids, she went out of her way to make me feel inferior to her and Wynonna.”

“It baffles me that there is someone who doesn’t like you.” Nicole nudged her gently with her shoulder. “I guess she must have been jealous of how brilliant you are.”

“I highly doubt that!” Waverly snorted. “No, Willa just loves being in control, and I was young enough for her to walk all over me.” Waverly stared out into the night, eyes glazing over in memory. “You know, she convinced Daddy and Wynonna not to tell me that my mother had cancer, apparently I was too young to understand what was happening and that I’d only make mom worse with all my crying and emotions.”

“I…that’s…” Nicole struggled for words. “When did you find out?”

“Two days before she died.”

“My god, Waverly.” Nicole gasped. “That’s horrible.”

“Then there was Daddy’s drinking problem, she tried to hide that from me too, and when I confronted her about it, she patted me on the cheek and told me that I didn’t need to know, that I was still too young.” Waverly laughed dryly. “I wasn’t too young to be on the receiving end of his drunken moods though, I just never understood why they were happening. Because Willa liked being in control, and even now, now that I’m old enough to be in control of my own life she can’t deal with it.”

“Then that’s her problem.” Nicole slipped an arm around Waverly’s shoulder, pulling her in close to her side. “I’ve spent all of a minute in a room with her and I can tell she’s kind of a dickhead. You are clearly the superior Earp.”

Waverly laughed, the noise getting caught in her throat as tears threatened. “There’s that charm again.”

“Well it made you smile so it worked.”

“Funny how things have reversed, yesterday it was me trying to make you smile.” Waverly sniffed, wiping the stray tear that had slipped out away with her hand before standing up and turning back to look at Nicole.

“Yeah, well, think it of me as returning the favour.” Nicole smiled up at her, eyes sparkling in the moonlight. “Wynonna was pretty worried about you when you stormed out, you should call her.”

“I’ll head back to the bar, I can’t keep running away from Willa, she wins every time I do. I just had to get away.”

“I understand that.” Nicole replied. “Sometimes running seems like the right idea, but there’s always another way.”

There was an underlying tone to her words, a seriousness that caused Waverly to pause.

“I’ll walk you back.” Before Waverly had time to ask what she meant by her last statement Nicole had stood up and offered her an arm.

Waverly took the proffered arm with a coy smile. “Why thank you officer.”

“My pleasure ma’am.” Nicole bowed her head.

* * *

Wynonna was waiting outside Shorty’s for them when they got back, Waverly let go of Nicole’s arm as they approached the middle Earp.

“You ok baby girl?” Wynonna tilted her head to one side, concern etched on her features.

“I’m fine,” Waverly smiled, “Just needed some fresh air, you know.”

“Yeah I completely understand,” Wynonna looked past Waverly to Nicole. “Thanks.”

“Anytime.” Nicole shot the two sisters her trademark smile. “I’ll leave you two to your evening.” With one more nod of her head she sauntered off down to the road, disappearing quickly into the dark.

“Hey,” Waverly tore her gaze away from Nicole’s retreating figure to look back at Wynonna. “I meant what I said the other day, we face this together.”

“Together.” Waverly agreed.

Wynonna pushed open the door, shooting Waverly a reassuring smile and together the two of them walked back into the bar where their sister waited for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that people are desperate for Waverly to find out and trust me it is coming soon I promise. Let me know what you thought about the chapter in the comments, be nice to me because I'm ill! Come chat to me on Tumblr. Will be making a start on the next chapter later today. Until next time!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! Sorry this update took longer than expected but this week has been crazy, work has been full on and I had my driving test earlier in the week so was madly panicking about that (I passed thank god!) The chapters seem to be getting longer and longer as I write them which I think is contributing to longer time between uploads so I will try and break them down a little from now on. 
> 
> To the reviewer how commented that the Britishness of some of the way the character speak pulls them out of the story, I'm sorry if that pulls you out of the story to the point where you can't read it. Unfortunately I am British so the way I write has been long ingrained and it's very difficult to change the habits of 25 years! I will do my best to write the story as authentically as I can but if I am not able to I hope people will understand. 
> 
> The bad news is there won't be an update next week because I'm off on holiday to Italy for a wedding and then a week out in Southern Italy. The good news is that I have 10 days of no work and not much to do other than laze about drinking and swimming, I am hoping to be able to get a lot of writing done and if all goes to plan I should have at least 2 chapters written by the time I come back! 
> 
> That's all from me, enjoy this chapter!

The next few days were tense, all three sisters trying to adjust to being under the same roof, to being around each other. Words were terse and tempers fraught, meal times were a battleground, each sentence spoken a carefully planned strike designed to gain the upper hand.

Waverly had been through this before, when Wynonna had returned from her travels a couple of years previously there had been a similar atmosphere in the house, not one filled with so much animosity but tense none the less. Both Wynonna and Waverly had had to relearn how to be around each other, and it had come with its frustrations. Wynonna wasn’t used to people interfering with her life, having had to answer to no one when she was out on the road. Waverly had to contend with an unpredictable force being back in her life, one that didn’t play by the rules she had set out for herself.

Waverly wouldn’t give up having Wynonna back with her for the world, but even she could admit that the first few weeks had been tough.

This was so much worse. 

Each Earp had developed their own strategy for coping with their new living arrangements. Wynonna had taken to cracking more jokes, more than usual, in an attempt to foster some kind of levity in the situation.

Waverly had thrown herself into her fellowship, spending as much time in the office as she could without being told to go home by a perplexed Professor Harrison. She also picked up a few more late night shift at Shorty’s, it said a lot that she’d rather be around the drunk and disorderly of Purgatory than at home with her sisters. Well, one sister.

Willa had carried on much as she had before she left for college, only this time with an inflated sense of self-entitlement that only made her more infuriating. Snide comments were common place, often hidden behind a veil of feigned sweetness. Willa had always been the master of the back handed compliment and she had lost none of her edge in her time away, if anything becoming a lawyer had only honed her skills.

Waverly had tried, she really had. She would greet her sister every morning, mostly met with a tight smile or one-word greeting in response. Any attempt at conversation invariably led to arguments or awkward silences that not even the filthiest of Wynonna’s jokes could lift.

No mention had been made of Bobo, Wynonna had made it crystal clear that she did not want his name mentioned in the house, and for once Willa didn’t protest. Both Wynonna and Waverly had been a little worried that he might come back to the farm, even if it was only to goad them. Wynonna had taken to keeping Peacemaker, Wyatt Earp’s legendary gun close to hand in the evenings. Not that either of them ever expected things to turn violent, but where Bobo Del Rey was concerned you couldn’t be too careful.

The town had been abuzz with talk about the return of the eldest Earp and her husband, everyone knew of Bobo but few were foolish enough to have direct dealings with him, his reputation alone was enough to keep people away. There were of course the few who were pleased by his return, Carl for one had snuck into Shorty’s just to inform Waverly of his excitement, before he had been caught by Shorty and chucked out again, with the promise that next time he was found in the bar Waverly would be let loose with her shotgun.

Waverly had long suspected that Bobo was caught up in gangs, when they’d been growing up he’d had a lot of shady friends and there had been plenty of rumours going around about what he and his friends did. Ward Earp had longed to catch Bobo in the act, but he had always been cunning, even as a teenager and Waverly was sure that he had only gotten more so in his adult years.

She had made a mental note to mention him to Dolls when she took him the information she had unearthed from the old book Professor Harrison had given her, if there was anyone who’d be able to catch Bobo it was Dolls.

The potential criminal dealings of her brother-in-law and the tense atmosphere at the homestead were not the only things that were plaguing Waverly’s mind. Her blossoming relationship (she wasn’t sure that was the right word, but it was the only one her brain kept throwing up) with Nicole was occupying a large amount of her time.

Nicole was unlike anyone else she had ever met, comforting and almost familiar at times, but also a mystery, something new and exciting. Waverly felt at times like she had known Nicole for years, the easy companionship that comes from old friends, but then there were the times when she realised how little she knew about her new friend, and how guarded she was sometimes. It seemed for every one thing she thought about Nicole there was an opposite thought. This should have irritated her no end, but Waverly found it oddly thrilling, in a way that she couldn’t quite describe.

* * *

"Waverly Earp, are you planning on doing anything other than clean that glass today?!” Gus’ gruff tone sounded right next to Waverly’s ear and she jumped, almost dropping the offending glass.

“I’m sorry what?”

“You’ve been wiping the same damn glass for the last twenty minutes.” Gus leant against the bar, arms crossed against her chest.

“Oh, I didn’t realise sorry.” Waverly placed the glass on the bar, the lights immediately sparkling off the immaculate surface.

“Must have been something pretty special you were thinking about.” Gus observed. “You were smiling somethin’ fierce.”

“It was just you know…stuff.” Waverly replied lamely, knowing Gus didn’t believe her for a second.

“Whoever they are, I hope they’re good enough for you.”

“There isn’t…I’m single!” Waverly protested, picking up instantly on Gus’ use of a gender neutral pronoun, not for the first time she wondered if the older woman knew more than she was letting on.

“Just as long as you’re happy.”

“Of course I’m happy! I’m a single Virgo with hair for days!” to illustrate her point Waverly flicked her hair over her shoulder. Gus shot her an unimpressed look before gesturing behind her.

“Less hair flicking, more customer serving.”

As Waverly turned around she was confronted by the very object of her thoughts, an amused Nicole Haught stood on the other side of the bar, hands resting gently on her belt.

“Please tell me you didn’t see or hear that?”

“Oh I saw it.” Nicole’s smirk widened, brown eyes sparkling mischievously. “Hair for days huh?”

“Weeks even.” Waverly replied. “Usual?”

“Please, if you’re not too busy flipping your hair around.” Nicole couldn’t contain the giggle that slipped past her lips and Waverly was having a hard time not smiling back.

“I’ll be back in just a minute,” she heard Nicole say as she rooted around for a glass, popping back up she saw Nicole walk away across the bar, reaching out to shake the hand of the resident who had called her over. Waverly couldn’t help but watch as Nicole worked her way around the pub, smiling and joking with the patrons of the bar, her eyes were bright and interested, her smiles wide and warm. There could be no doubt about it, Nicole Haught had firmly wormed her way into the hearts of the residents of Purgatory.

Waverly’s eyes roamed over the officer’s form, appreciating the way the dark shirt clung to her upper body, highlighting every curve, the smooth way she walked, with the practiced ease of an athlete. She was staring and she knew it.

She wasn’t the only one.

Across the bar sat Rachel Mahoney, another girl from Waverly’s year, one of Stephanie’s gang. She was tall, all legs, dark brown hair, almost black that hung down her back. One hand, with perfectly manicured fingernails rested idly on the top of a wine glass, occasionally swirling around the rim in a perfectly controlled movement, her eyes were fixed firmly on Nicole and there was a look on her face that Waverly recognised instantly.

It was a look that Rachel had given Champ almost every single time she had seen him when he was dating Waverly.

Rising smoothly from her seat Rachel swept across the room, coming to a stop next to Nicole. Waverly watched with knotted eyebrows as Rachel flashed a flirtatious smile the officer’s way, hand coming up to brush gently against Nicole’s forearm. The taller woman looked a little surprised at the attention, but quickly covered it with an easy smile, leaning down slightly to hear what Rachel was saying, Waverly’s frown intensified as she watched her old class mate rise up onto her tip toes, lips brushing against Nicole’s ear in a manner that was completely unnecessary.

In Waverly’s mind anyway.

Willing the beer to pour into the glass faster Waverly tried to ignore the flush of jealously that was coiling in her stomach as Rachel continued to paw at Nicole, as soon as the liquid reached the rim of the glass Waverly was moving, ignoring the frustrated calls of the men at the bar who wanted a refill she had one goal in mind. Get to Nicole.

“Here you are!” Plastering a fake smile on her face and a bright lilt to her voice she held the glass out to Nicole, Waverly didn’t want to jump to conclusions but she noted with some pride that Nicole’s smile got a little bit brighter when soft brown eyes met her own.

“Thanks Waverly. Here.” Nicole dug a note out of her pocket and held it out towards her.

“No, this one is on the house. You know for the other night.” Waverly pushed the proffered note back towards Nicole, making sure her fingers curled around Nicole’s squeezing gently.

“Thank you, that’s very kind of you.” Nicole stuttered slightly over the words. “I was just chatting to Rachel here do you…?”

“Yes, Waverly and I have known for a long time.” Rachel interjected. “I was just telling Nicole how nice it was to see a new face in Purgatory, especially one as nice as hers, and how amazing it is to have a woman on the force.”

Nicole blushed heavily at the compliment, her face going almost as red as her hair. “I’m glad the town have taken to my presence here.” She replied.

“Oh yes, we’re all very…taken with you.” Rachel gave another sultry smile and Waverly had to work hard not to grind her teeth at the suggestion that oozed from the other woman’s tone. “We should get a drink sometime officer, really get to…know one another.” Another touch to Nicole’s arm, this one a lingering one accompanied by a gaze full of promise. Waverly felt her jaw tightening as the mental image flashed in her head of what exactly Rachel meant by ‘getting to know one another’.

“I’d like that.” Nicole’s eyes flitted to Waverly before she had a chance to straighten her face, shock flashed in the officer’s eyes as she took in Waverly’s clenched jaw. “Are you ok after the other night?”

“Yeah, I’m fine thank you for all your help.”

“Oh I didn’t do all that much.” Nicole blushed again, gaze shifting down to her feet.

“You were great,” Waverly reached out and placed a hand on Nicole’s arm, fingers stroking softly against the exposed skin where the officer had rolled up her sleeves.

If Nicole had been shocked by Waverly’s earlier expression she looked downright flabbergasted now, her eyes didn’t seem to know where to settle, darting between Waverly and Rachel, who was looking down at Waverly’s hand like it had personally offended her. 

“Yes, we all heard about your little altercations in here with Champ the other night.” Rachel spoke up a moment later, her tone mocking, breaking Nicole and Waverly’s concentration. Nicole’s gaze had finally settled on Waverly, eyes meeting in an intense stare, charged with tension. The smaller brunette’s hand still gently clasped the redhead’s forearm, and despite the slight contact Waverly didn’t fail to notice the fire that blossomed from the spot where their skin touched.

“Oh, yeah,” Waverly reluctantly let go, noting with satisfaction that Nicole almost pouted at the loss of contact. “Champ was being a bit of a dick.”

“Seems like he had some cause though.” Rachel replied. “I’m just playing devil’s advocate.” She continued quickly as Waverly’s expression darkened. “But you did sleep with someone the day you guys broke up, a little insensitive don’t you think?”

“Champ was sleeping with a whole bunch of people _before_ we split up. Some of them in this room.” Waverly retorted, eyebrow raising as Rachel’s face tinged a little with pink, confirming in her mind that her old class mate had been one of Champ’s bedfellows. “So I think I’m ok, or do you want to tell me I’m wrong?”

Nicole was back looking between the two women as they glared at each other, a slightly fearful look on face.

“There was clearly a reason he was straying.” Rachel crossed her arms over her chest, eyebrows raising.

“Yeah, it’s called his dick!”

“Ok, ladies!” Nicole interjected quickly as Rachel opened he mouth, no doubt with a snarky retort. “Maybe we should take this down a notch, I’d hate to have to arrest either of you.” Her words were accompanied by a slightly nervous laugh and tug at her hat.

Rachel’s demeanour changed in an instant, stepping closer to Nicole her eyes travelled up and down the officer’s body as she leant in. “I’m sure we could find some use for the handcuffs without it coming to that.” The murmured words were spoken just loud enough so Waverly could hear.

Nicole flushed scarlet again, clearing her throat loudly she rubbed the back of her neck. “Well…I mean…”

Rachel laughed, reaching into her purse she pulled out a business card and tucked it into one of Nicole’s pockets. “Give me a call sometime, we’ll get that drink.” Turning and walking away glanced back once. “I’m _dying_ to get to know the woman behind the uniform.” With one last wink she was gone.

Leaving a flustered Nicole, and a livid Waverly.

“God that girl is insufferable!” Waverly growled in a voice that belonged more on Wynonna than it did on her as she stomped back behind the bar, roughly grabbing a nearby cloth and beginning to wipe the bar down.

“She seemed quite nice to me.” Nicole commented, lifting her glass to her lips and taking a large swig.

“That’s because she was trying to flirt her way into your pants!”

“I don’t think she was being serious.” Nicole snorted.

“Please Nicole!” Waverly fixed the other woman with an incredulous stare. “She couldn’t have been more serious if she actually had her hand down your pants!”

“Waverly!” Nicole hissed eyes darting to see if anyone had overheard them.

“Well it’s true.” Waverly replied, aware that she was rubbing the wood of the bar more vigorously that was probably necessary. The jealousy and anger at seeing Rachel around Nicole took her surprise, it boiled viscerally in her stomach with an intensity that was generally saved for Willa and Bobo.

She had come to terms with her attraction to Nicole, it would be stupid to try and deny it now. But it was surprising just how strong her crush was, all it had taken for Waverly to see it was someone else flirting with Nicole. It brought her to the realisation, she really liked Nicole.

She didn’t know whether to hate Rachel for making her feel so jealous, or thank her for making things clearer.

She settled on a feeling of apathy.

“Are you...jealous?” Nicole looked like she couldn’t quite believe what she was saying.

“Me...jealous? No!” Waverly might be feeling more clarity about her feelings but that didn’t mean she was willing to admit them out loud then and there. “Excuse me for not wanting to see a friend be pawed over like she’s a piece of meat!”

Nicole chuckled, resting her elbows on the bar. “Waverly Earp you are without a doubt, the most adorable person I’ve ever met and...”

The loud smashing of a glass interrupted whatever Nicole had been about to say. Turning to the source of the noise Waverly sighed heavily at the sight of two men standing nose to nose, clutching fistfuls of each other’s shirts.

“Excuse me.” Reaching under the bar she grabbed her shotgun, pumping it once she set off towards the pair. “Right!”

When she returned a few moments later, Nicole had gone. 

* * *

Waverly stifled a large yawn as she turned her jeep onto the dirt track that led up the homestead. Dusk was closing in and the sky was turning a dark blue around her, the lights from the house helping to guide he way.

As she pulled into the yard she noted with interest the big black SUV that sat outside the house, a small smirk breaking out on her face as she recognised the number plate.

Letting herself silently into the house she craned her ears listening for sounds of movement, sure enough there were murmured voices coming from deeper in the house, one of them decidedly deeper than the other.

“I’m home!” Waverly called out loudly striding quickly into the living room, a loud thud accompanied by a muffled curse followed her greeting. Waverly’s smile only grew as she rounded the corner and found a very flustered looking Dolls standing in the middle of the living room.

“Hey Deputy Marshall Dolls!” Waverly smiled brightly as she moved into the room. It became obvious quickly that the thud she had heard was Wynonna falling off the sofa, her sister was currently attempting to hid behind the sofa, one arm out of her shirt. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”

“I was…just here on some official business.” Dolls replied stoically, hands clasped behind his back, which was ramrod straight.

“Official business?” Waverly questioned. “Tell me, does all your official business often happen with your trousers undone.”

Dolls flushed, something Waverly had never seen him do, hands scrabbling at his belt even as Wynonna appeared from behind the sofa.

“Waverly! I was just...you know...we were...” Wynonna seemed to take Waverly’s expression before sighing. “Oh fuck it, it’s quite obvious what we were doing, I’m not spelling it out. Dolls and I have been...” She risked a glance to Dolls who was still staring at a spot on the wall to the left of Waverly’s head. “...well you know....sleeping together.”

“Well that _is_ a surprise!” Waverly gasped, hands coming up to slap against her cheeks in mock surprise. “You’ve both been so subtle!”

Wynonna realised her sister was joking, her face morphing quickly into a scowl as she stormed off to the kitchen, leaving Waverly with Dolls, the older man still doing his best to look like he hadn’t just been caught with his trousers down by his ankles.

“It’s actually good you’re here, I have something for you.” Crossing to her bag she rifled through it until she found the slim file she had prepared the day before.

“What’s this?” Dolls took the file and flipped it open, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the first few lines.

“It’s some stuff I came across in my research, about the gangs in Purgatory. It looks like some of the them, particularly the Revenants, have been operating out of the town for a couple of hundred years. I figured since your being here is obviously to do with the gangs that you might be able to use the information.”

Dolls bristled a little at her last sentence. “My purpose here is...”

“Yes, yes, yes confidential.” Waverly interrupted impatiently. “But surely you’ve realised by now that in a small town like this, confidential doesn’t mean squat! Hell, I’d beat even the gangs know why you’re here.”

“I see.” Dolls muttered, clearly the thought hadn’t occurred to him.

“And, whilst we’re on the subject.” Waverly pointed an accusatory finger at him. “You were bang out of order with Nicole the other day!”

Dolls at least had the sense to look embarrassed. “Yes, that was...an unfortunate incident.”

“Damn right it was!” Waverly waved her finger in his face “Do you know how difficult it is to be accepted as a woman in a predominantly male job! She works harder than anyone in that place and deserves some respect, who knows she might even be able to help you.”

Dolls was looking at her in a strange way, something dawning quickly in his eyes before he stifled it with another contrite expression. “I did apologise to her.” He reasoned.

“Yes, she did tell me you do a good apology.” Waverly conceded.

“It was wrong of me to say what I did, contrary to how it may seem I do think Officer Haught is a very -good police officer, more than likely the best in this town.”

“Yes, she is pretty great.” Waverly realised too late that her voice with tinged with a wistful admiration that was not normal when talking about a friend. “Anyway, I hope that’s helpful.”

Dolls turned his attention back to the file on his hands. “This is really good work, it’s very detailed.”

“Oh that’s only the beginning,” Waverly stepped forward flicking the end of her work. “This is only from one text but I’m sure there is a lot that I can dig up from other sources if you’d like?”

“I’m never one to turn down valuable resources.” Dolls gave a small smile. “Really good job Earp.”

“Hey!” Wynonna protested as she re-emerged from the kitchen, a densely stuffed sandwich in her hand. “I’m the only one you’re allowed to call Earp.” The comment was made with a sidelong wink at Waverly leaving her in no doubt what Wynonna was referring too.

“Ewww gross, I do not need to hear what you call each other when you do it!” she grimaced.

“Consider that payback for the nasty image you put in my head of you and Champ.” Wynonna flopped down on the sofa, taking a large bite of her sandwich.

“I’m going to go.” Dolls started moving towards the door. “Thanks for this Waverly.”

“I’ll come to you if I find anything else.”

“Please do. Oh and one more thing,” Dolls paused by the door, looking back to Waverly with a rare smile. “Nicole is lucky to have you as a friend; you must really like her to defend her like that. Make sure she knows it.”

“I will.” Was all Waverly could manage as the Deputy Marshall disappeared.

“What was that all about?” Wynonna asked around a mouthful of food.

“Nothing.” Waverly murmured.

Dolls’ words stayed with her all through the evening, although she wasn’t given any time to think about them in any great detail, Wynonna was in a demanding mood, until she crawled into bed. Lying in the dark staring at the ceiling, where she seemed to be doing all her soul searching at the moment, she sighed and rubbed her eyes.

Doll’s observation, paired with what had happened earlier that day in the bar with Rachel had gone a long way to convincing Waverly that her ‘crush’ on Nicole, wasn’t so much a crush anymore, more rapidly developing feelings. The other woman had wormed her way into Waverly’s brain with such fluidity and finesse that Waverly couldn’t even rightly determine when it had happened.

The dimples definitely had something to do with it.

There were so many things to like about Nicole, her ability to make Waverly laugh, her kind caring nature, her slight awkwardness whenever she was faced with praise and compliments, the smile she wore whenever she walked into a room and saw Waverly, a smile Waverly liked to think was for her. She was a familiar, strong calming presence but exciting and arousing in ways that Waverly couldn’t even begin to describe. She liked the way that Nicole went out of her way, not just to help Waverly but Wynonna as well, her sister did not make friends easily but Waverly could tell that she had warmed to the redhead, even if Nicole was in law enforcement, Wynonna’s sworn enemies.

Most of all Waverly liked the way she felt when she was around Nicole, she felt lighter, like the problems that plagued her seemed to fall away, she liked how confident Nicole made her feel with her compliments, how appreciated with her smile, she liked that she laughed more when she was around Nicole.

Most of all she realised that when she wasn’t around Nicole, there was always a part of her that was wishing that she was.

_Damn_

She needed to do something, she couldn’t keep living in this perpetual state of trying to figure things out, she needed to make a decision either way.

It was there, lying in the dark that Waverly did just that, she made a decision, one that was bolder and scarier than anything she had ever decided before.

She was going to tell Nicole how she felt.

* * *

 

Finding the right time to enact her plan was harder than Waverly had anticipated, some of this was down to an insanely busy schedule in the morning, and some of it was down to her own nervousness. (It’s difficult to decide how to tell a woman you’re attracted to them when up until that point you’d only been with men). It was late afternoon before she got around to thinking about how she might go about telling Nicole.

If felt like the second she had resolved to do something, a great weight had been lifted from her shoulders, and all the questions she’d had in the past couple of months since _that_ night, whilst they hadn’t been answered, the stress she had been feeling about them seemed to have abated slightly.  Mostly she had realised that trying to figure everything out now was beyond pointless, life had a habit of throwing the unexpected at you without bothering to explain its presence, without offering rhyme or reason as to why something had happened at that moment or for what reason and the only thing she could hope to do was pick it up and go with it. a completely new experience for her.

That didn’t make it any less scary, but it at the same time she couldn’t help but feel a thrill of excitement at doing something completely spontaneous, and daring. She was going to put her heart on the line here, there was no two ways about it.

She supposed she had her mystery woman to thank for this new outlook on life, because without her she would never have even contemplated what she was about to do.

Looking down intently at her phone, Waverly tried desperately to pluck up the courage that had been so readily available earlier when this idea had come to her. A glance around the bar showed that the last few patrons sat nursing the dregs of the drinks, meaning she had little to do in the way of work, all the more time to stare down at her phone, willing the words to text themselves. All she had to say was ‘I want to see you’ why was it so difficult?

“Come on just do it!” she muttered under her breath.

“Do what?” a voice speaking very close startled her and looking up Waverly quickly tucked her phone away as she was confronted by Nicole’s inquisitive gaze.

“You’re here!” she squeaked. “I didn’t text you did I?” Looking down at where her phone had been she wondered if she had momentarily blacked out from nerves and sent a text anyway.

“Err no.” Nicole looked confused. “What were you supposed to be doing?”

“Oh, nothing.” Waverly gave a breathy laugh. “I was just talking to myself.”

“That’s the first sign of madness you know.”

“Well then I’m probably as mad as they come.” Waverly joked.

“I highly doubt that.” Nicole spoke in an almost reverent tone, smiling at Waverly, it was at that moment that she noticed that the officer looked nervous.

“Are you ok?”

“Me? Yeah, I’m fine. I just…” Nicole pushed herself off the stool she had been perching on a paced in front of the bar. “I came here to tell you something, it’s quite important, and I’m not sure how you’re going to react.”

“Ookkkayy.” Waverly frowned slightly, wondering what Nicole could possibly have to tell her that would get her this worked up. She had never seen her like this and whilst she had become used to the older woman being cryptic, this was different, there was a nervous resolve in Nicole’s eyes, it was if she had no idea what she was about to do, but she was going to do it anyway.

“Yeah,” Nicole was still pacing, “I really should have done this a while ago, but you know, I was too scared, and I guess it may be too late but I wanted you to you know…”

“Nicole!” Waverly cut off the redhead’s rambling. “Why don’t you sit down; do you want a drink?”

“A drink would be great!” Nicole flopped back down into a stool. “Whiskey please.” Waverly quickly poured out a measure, handing it to Nicole who took it with a nod of thanks.

“Look I need to go and see to these last guys and close up, but will you stay? We have a drink and chat after? There was actually something I wanted to talk to you about too.”

“Yeah, ok that would be good.” If anything Nicole looked more nervous and she took a long sip of her drink as Waverly moved away to the few drinkers who were left.

After a few minutes of gentle encouragement followed by some mild, totally empty threats that they would be barred if they didn’t leave right away Waverly was able to chide the men out of the bar, waving away their drunken compliments with a good natured smile.

“Sorry about that.” Pausing to grab a bottle of whiskey and an extra glass she slid into the seat next to Nicole, doing her best to keep a respectable distance between them even though her mind urged to move closer. “Another?”

“Please.”

Both women knocked back their drinks in silence, each trying to work up the courage to speak, but neither seeming to find it. Waverly immediately poured herself another drink, savouring the first sip this time, allowing the alcohol to ground her, give her something to focus on in the here and now other than her own beating heart which she was pretty sure Nicole could hear.

Was it possible that Nicole was here to tell her the same thing? Had she had the same thoughts as Waverly and was now acting on them? What else could Nicole possibly have to tell her if not that?

Waverly had to take another drink at that thought, she knew that she was probably jumping the gun and jumping to conclusions, but it was hard not to try and plan out how to make this conversation run smoother.

She was a planner after all.

“How was your day?” she had to say something when she realised that they had been sat in silence for at least a few minutes.

“It was long.” Nicole replied, looking down into her glass. “A lot of reading?”

“What have you been reading about?”

“Gangs.” Nicole’s reply was simple and accompanied by a sigh. “They’re becoming bolder, more assaults, more robberies, more bribery. It’s like something has changed, some spark that wasn’t there before, it’s put a fire up them.”

Waverly frowned slightly at the officer’s words, what she was describing was only reinforcing her own suspicions that Bobo was part of the gangs, it could hardly be coincidence that they had become more ambitious and out in the open right as the shadiest character in Purgatory had returned. She was about to tell Nicole this when the other woman spoke again.

“I probably shouldn’t be telling you all this, Dolls will probably try and threaten me with treason again.”

“I won’t say anything I promise.”

“Thank you,” Nicole turned her head and gave her a smile that made Waverly’s heart melt a little.

And make her even more nervous at the same time.

“Have you had a busy day?” Nicole asked.

“Yes it’s been pretty much nonstop, Gus isn’t feeling very well so I had to cover her shift by myself because Shorty is away.” Waverly looked around the bar, taking in the mess the patrons had left with a soft sigh.

“I can help you clean up if you want?” Nicole offered immediately. 

“That’s very kind of you, but there’s really no need. I’ll deal with it in a little while, right now all I want is a drink.”

_And to tell you I’m insanely attracted you_.

The last part was added on in her head.

They lapsed into silence again, both staring down into their glasses as if they liquid inside held the answers to the questions.

“How are things at home? With Willa?” it appeared Nicole’s earlier insistence that she say whatever she had come to say had disappeared somewhat and she was content with small talk for now. Waverly couldn’t say she was all that disappointed, her own courage had dropped dramatically.

“Tense,” she replied, “this is the first time we’ve all been in the house at the same time since before Willa went away to college, it’s taking some getting used to.”

“I’ll bet, I can’t imagine having to spend long periods of time back in the same house as my family.” Nicole shuddered slightly at the thought.

“Do you have any brother or sisters?”

“A sister, younger, and the complete opposite of me.” Nicole chuckled lightly.

“In what way?”

“Well when we were growing up I was always a tomboy, I loved being outdoors whilst she preferred staying in, she’s much more academic than I was, I spent far too much time playing sport to ace classes.”

“It doesn’t surprise me at all that you’re sporty.” Waverly cast a quick appreciative glance up Nicole’s body.

“She’s also already married with a kid and another baby on the way and she’s only twenty-one.”

“Oh wow.”

“Yeah.” Nicole looked deep in thought, eyes trained ahead. Taking a breath, she turned back to Waverly, licking her lips before speaking. “Listen…”

“How did you know you were gay?” Waverly hadn’t meant to interrupt Nicole but she had found herself blurting out the question before she could stop herself, motivated by a small part of her that wasn’t quite ready yet to broach the subject they were both clearly dancing about.

Waverly was also driven by a fundamental desire to understand, understand if the confusion, the feeling of an upside down world and perhaps most of all the sense of being alone in a world that she no longer understood was common place, was it normal?

Nicole, understandably, looked a little taken aback by the question. “Ummm…” she took another drink. “How did you…?”

“Know you were gay?” Waverly winced at her inability to let the other woman finish a sentence.

“Yeah.”

“Chrissy overheard you telling Paul Smith about your ex back in Chicago. I assumed you didn’t mind people knowing but I realise that Chrissy shouldn’t have been eavesdropping, or gossiping for that matter, so if you didn’t want anyone to know…”

“Waverly, it’s ok. I don’t mind people knowing.” Nicole cut her off with a kind smile before she could embarrass herself further with her rambling.

“Ok, that’s good.” Waverly sighed. “So, how did you know, if you don’t mind my asking?”

Nicole considered the question for a moment, turning her glass round in her hands as she thought. “I don’t think there was a single moment that it hit me, I think it something that just kind of happened over time, just in the background you know? Behind the scenes.” She paused to finish her drink, which Waverly diligently refilled. “I had always suspected that there was something a little different about me, as clichéd as that sounds.”

“What do you mean?” Waverly asked.

Nicole’s brow furrowed. “I don’t quite rightly know, I guess if I had to describe it I’d say it was like having a stone in your shoe, but a tiny one. You know the kind that occasionally gets stuck up by your toes and is mildly annoying to the point where you know you should remove it but then it goes away and you forget about it. When I was younger I always felt like there was something off, when I was playing sport and people would make comments about why I wasn’t showing more interest in what the other girls were doing, and then when all the girl’s my age started showing interest in boys there were more comments…” Nicole trailed off, her eyes glazed over in memory.

“I’m sorry, you don’t have to talk about this if it upsets you.” Waverly said softly, one hand covering Nicole’s on the bar. The officer looked down at the motion, eyes clearing as they met with Waverly’s.

“No, no it’s ok. It’s good to talk about, remembering is good.” She cleared her throat once breaking eye contact but not moving her hand. “I’d always admired girls, you know, and it wasn’t until I got older, that I started to realise that maybe that admiration was attraction too.”

“Was there one moment that kind of…brought it home?” Waverly tentatively ventured.

“I guess; I was at a party. It was after a sports game of some kind, I can’t remember which one, I actually don’t really remember all that much about the party, but I do remember Shirley.”

“Shirley?” Waverly’s eyebrows raised.

“Yeah, her parents were a little old fashioned.” Nicole chuckled. “So Shirley was the head of the school’s debate team, but she was also a cheerleader, I never knew how she found the time to fit in both.”

“That’s very impressive.” Waverly tried not to let herself get too jealous of a teenager she had never met who was causing such a soft look on Nicole’s face.

“She had the loveliest smile.” Nicole carried on, lost once again in her memories. “And that night she came and sat next to me on a bench outside, she left her friends to come and talk to me, and we just sat there, for hours talking about anything we could think about.” Nicole gave a slight wistful sigh. “Nothing else happened that night, but it was in that moment that it all kind of came together for me, all the uncomfortable feelings over the years, the niggling that something wasn’t quite right, all just fell away and I realised that I liked girls. I liked _this_ girl.”

“That’s…really sweet actually.” Waverly found that she couldn’t be jealous, not when Nicole’s expression was so open, so pure.

She could feel her own smile widening as Nicole’s thumb gently stroked over the back of her hand, it seemed the other woman didn’t even realise she was doing it.

“So what happened with you and…Shirley?” Waverly asked a moment later.

“We dated for a while. But, when it came to deciding what we wanted to do after high school it became pretty apparent that we were headed in different directions, we’re still friends actually. To this day it’s the only one of my relationships which has ended amicably.”

“We’ve all been there.” Waverly muttered, her train wreck of a relationship with Champ coming to mind instantly. “My last and only really substantial relationship was with Champ and that was just an endless circle of cheating on his part forgiveness on my part and generally being underwhelming.”

“Well, that is what happened when you date boy-men.” Nicole’s laugh was muffled by her glass.

“Can’t argue there.”

It seemed to be at this moment of levity that both of them realised that they had a purpose from this conversation, things that needed to be said.

They also both decided they needed another drink.

“So, seeing as we’re both just not saying anything I’m going to go first.” Waverly declared, still wincing from the harsh burn of the whiskey. “Because I think we both have the same thing to say.”

“You do?” Nicole’s eyes widened a little and her hand that was gripping her glass shook slightly, but Waverly barely noticed because she was working hard to contain her own shaking hands, this was it. She was going to do it.

“Yes definitely, I mean I can’t believe it’s taken us this long to talk about! I mean, it’s pretty big right?”

“Yeah, it is.” Nicole’s voice had lowered and she sounded wary.

“When I first realised, it took a while for me to comprehend what exactly what’s happened. I told myself for a long time that if I could ignore if then it would just go away.”

“Right, I see.” Nicole’s grip loosened on Waverly’s hand, slipping away and the smaller girl found herself missing the contact immediately. 

“I guess I should have realised a lot sooner anyway, all the signs were there staring me in the face.”

“The signs?”

“Yeah I mean; you must feel it too.” Waverly felt her confidence picking up.

“Feel it?” Nicole seemed to just be repeating a couple of words of her sentences, face morphed into a mask of confusion.

“Yeah I’m not going crazy right, there’s something here?” Waverly motioned between them. “Like, I could feel it the first time we met in Shorty’s, although I didn’t know what it was back then.”

“Shorty’s?” Nicole seemed to shake herself out of her confusion. “Wait so you don’t rem…” Pulling herself up she took a breath. “What are we talking about here?”

“This…chemistry between us.” Waverly replied a little breathlessly. “Being around you is just so refreshing and exciting.” Rising from her seat she started to pace near the bar like Nicole had when she had come in earlier. “When I’m around you time just seems to speed up going so fast that I can’t quite get my head around it, it’s exhilarating, its liberating…and it’s scary as hell.” She let out a little laugh.

Nicole rose slowly from her seat, hands coming to rest on her belt. “I scare you?”

“Yes.” Waverly breathed, stepping past Nicole to grab the bottle from the bar taking a long swig. “But in a really, really good way. In a ‘my god this woman is so different to everyone you have ever met, she’s gorgeous and kind and funny and she makes you feel things you have _never_ felt before!’ I’m a planner, I don’t do spontaneous feelings, but I want to have them for you.”

Waverly took another swig, aware she was swaying slightly on her feet, but she didn’t care, the alcohol had given her the courage to say the things she had thought she might never utter to another human, let along Nicole.

“I’m either really drunk and hearing things, dreaming or Waverly Earp just told me she likes me.” Nicole murmured.

“She did just tell you that.” Waverly ducked her head, shyness threatening for the first time.

“Wow.” Nicole reached out and plucked the bottle from Waverly’s hands.

“Yeah, wow.” Waverly steeled herself before she spoke again, taking a step forward. “I want to kiss you.”

Nicole’s eyes widened at Waverly’s words and she instinctively took a step back as the smaller woman advanced towards her.

Nicole’s back hit the edge of the pool table and her breath caught in her throat, taking advantage of the movement Waverly pressed forward into Nicole’s personal space, until there were barely a few inches between their bodies. She heard Nicole swallow audibly and a tremble ran through the redhead’s body as Waverly softly ran her fingertips up the exposed skin of Nicole’s forearms.

“Waverly.” Nicole breathed, hands tentatively encircling the younger woman’s waist.

“Mmmm Nicole.” Waverly brushed her nose against the underside of the other woman’s jaw, revelling in the second shudder it sent coursing through the body so close to hers. “You have no idea how much I wanted to kiss you that night at the homestead. How much I want to kiss you now.”

“You do?” Nicole’s voice was barely a whisper and Waverly could smell the whiskey on her breath, their faces now mere centimetres away from each other. Waverly couldn’t hear anything over the ponding of her heart, she could feel Nicole’s thudding away under her fingers as she hands ran up the redhead’s chest.

“I really.” She moved closer. “Really.” Closer still. “Do.”

“Waverly,” Nicole’s hands pushed her back a few centimetres. “I really want to kiss you too.” She said quickly to combat the confusion spreading over Waverly’s features. “But before I do there’s something I have to tell you.”

“OK fine,” Waverly made to pull back but Nicole tightened her grip on the younger woman’s waist, as if loath to let her go.

“You have to know, before I say this that I never ever meant to hurt…”

In a scenario that was becoming all too familiar to Waverly they were interrupted. This time it was the harsh ringing of her phone.

“Oh. My. God!” Waverly growled loudly, pulling the phone out of her back pocket she scowled heavily at the screen. “Bloody Wynonna!” tapping the screen she held her phone up to her ear. “What?!”

Much of what was said on the other end of the line was complete gibberish, Wynonna was babbling too quickly and in too high pitched a voice. The only words that Waverly could make out with any clarity were ‘emergency’, ‘death’ and ‘holy fucking shit’

“What’s wrong?” Nicole asked softly as Waverly promised to be right there and hung up the phone.

“It’s Wynonna, something’s happening.” Waverly pushed the phone back into he pocket and sighed heavily, eyes coming to meet Nicole’s shining with regret. “This had better be really important.” She looked like she might lean up to connect their lips but before she could move her phone pinged loudly.

“I have to go.” She whined regretfully extracting herself from Nicole’s grip and moving away to grab her stuff. “This is to be continued!” she pointed between herself and Nicole fiercely.

“To be continued. Right.” Nicole muttered as Waverly disappeared out of sight into the back room. “Fucking hell.” With one last longing glance to the doorway where Waverly had disappeared Nicole grabbed her jacket off the stool and slipped quietly out of the bar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's the last almost kiss/Nicole coming clean I promise! I had this scene in mind from the moment I conceived this fic and I hope it's come out as well on paper as it did in my head! Let me know what you thought in the comments and kudos as usual always appreciated. Come and chat to me on Tumblr if you have any questions about the story or anything else! 
> 
> Apologies there won't be an update next week but hopefully I'll be back in two weeks with a couple of chapters!
> 
> Until next time.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I'm back from my holiday, feeling much more relaxed and a new chapter at the ready. I really hope you enjoy this one as much as I enjoyed writing it, although I think the beer and the sun helped with the writing process. I won't ramble on for too long so enjoy this chapter!

Wynonna’s ‘emergency’ had turned out to be a small fire in the kitchen, although from the way she had described it Waverly couldn’t be blamed from assuming that there was a raging inferno engulfing the homestead, the middle Earp had been trying to cook for herself a late night snack after coming in from work and had somehow managed to set the stove alight. Luckily the fire hadn’t been serious and Waverly had been able to extinguish it earlier on her hurried return home.

That didn’t mean she was happy about it.

“I don’t understand why you’re getting so grumpy.” Wynonna snarked defensively as Waverly clattered loudly around the kitchen attempting to salvage some form of a meal.

“I was in the middle of something.” Waverly growled.

“What could possibly have been so important that you would rather do that instead of coming to save your favourite sister from the jaws of death.”

Waverly thought immediately of how close her lips had been to Nicole’s back at the bar and bit down a groan of frustration. Being in such close proximity to the other woman, with such intimate thoughts on her mind had caused an ache to begin to build between her thighs that had yet to abate. If anything being unable to kiss Nicole had only made it much, much worse as Waverly’s powerful imagination had conjured up all sorts of tantalising scenarios about how the kiss would have progressed had they not been interrupted, these scenarios got progressively steamier as she drove home, most of them involving prolonged use of the pool table.

Admittedly these images had been dulled somewhat by other images of Wynonna burning to death if she didn’t get home quick enough.

“Pfftt, as if you’re my favourite sister.” Waverly grunted in an attempt to steer her mind away from those images.

“Oh yes, my mistake, you definitely prefer Willa over me.” Wynonna rolled her eyes. “Don’t lie, if it had been Willa who’d set the kitchen on fire you’d have let her stew a little.” She chortled, far too amused at her own pun.

“You were in no real danger; it was a small fire.” Waverly stifled a chuckle, trying not to think that there was some truth in Wynonna’s teasing. “Speaking of, where is Willa? I thought she’d be home at this time of night.”

“I haven’t seen her all day.” Wynonna shrugged.

As if she’d been waiting outside for the right time to enter, the front door opened and Willa’s voice called out a greeting in the hall. The heavy tread of boots alongside Willa’s told the two sisters that Willa wasn’t alone and with a quick glance at one another they steeled themselves for the only person it could be.

Sure enough Bobo sauntered into the kitchen a moment later, decked out in his usual garish fur coat, a familiar smirk pulling at his lips when his eyes landed on Waverly and Wynonna.

“Good evening ladies. So lovely to see you again.”

“Whatever.” Wynonna pushed herself off the counter and moved over to the fridge.

“Be nice Wynonna.” Willa scolded, entering the kitchen with a large bag clutched in one hand. “Bobo is making an effort.”

“He could make more of an effort to never step foot in here again.” Willa shot a dark look at her sister’s response.

“What’s with the bag?” Waverly asked. “Are you guy’s leaving us?” she tried not to sound too hopeful at the prospect.

“No. Actually, we’re going to be staying a little longer than we first anticipated.” Willa replied, looking a little smug at being able to burst Waverly’s bubble.

“Oh.” Both Wynonna and Waverly said at the same time.

“Yes.” Willa’s smile broadened.

“How comes?”

“Well a business opportunity has presented itself to me.” It was Bobo who replied. “I intend to stick around until it pans out.”

“What kind of business opportunity?” Wynonna asked suspiciously, clearly thinking along the same lines as Waverly.

“Oh, I won’t bore you with all the details, but it’s all highly important.”

“Highly illegal more like.” Wynonna muttered around her beer, ignoring the warning look from Willa.

“Well,” Waverly announced into the silence that descended onto the table. “I'm going to bed.” She was desperate to be away to the relative safety of her room.

“No please, stay and have a drink with us.” Bobo pulled out a bottle of expensive whiskey from his coat, placing it on the table. “My way of apologising for what happened the last time I was here.”

Waverly looked to Wynonna who gave a slight shrug in confusion, with a soft sigh the youngest Earp reluctantly took a seat opposite Bobo, warily taking the glass he offered her and giving it a cursory sniff.

“To sister’s!” Bobo declared. “Three of the loveliest I have ever laid eyes on.” The only sound to greet his toast was the soft clink of glasses, even Willa looked a little put out by her husband’s words.

“Anyway.” Always the first to attempt to dissipate the tension Wynonna spoke up a moment later. “Creepy toasts aside, if you're staying longer what will happen to your cases Willa? I thought you said you were close to making partner.”

“There's nothing big happening right now and they can deal without me for few weeks. It would actually work in my favour if something were to go wrong whilst I was away, it will show them how valuable I am to them.” Willa replied. “I've barely had a break since I started working there and it would be nice to spend a little time recharging my batteries.”

“I'm surprised you came back here to do that.” Wynonna took a sip of her drink.

“So was I,” Willa admitted. “I did think about going somewhere else, but in the end it always came back to being here, I guess, a small part of me has missed this place, as much as I wanted it get away from it, turns out it's not that easy. And I guess I missed you two too.”

“We missed you too.” Nobody was more surprised than Waverly that words had come from her, and it was only as she uttered them that she realised she meant them.

Whilst it was true that most of her childhood memories with Willa were tainted with sour feeling, it was easy to forget that sometimes, just sometimes Willa acted like an older sister. There had been times when their father had been in one of his drunken moods that all three sisters would huddle under the covers of one bed, telling stories and playing games, all the while trying to block out the sounds that came from downstairs.

Willa had also been fiercely protective of both of her sister's, if anyone gave either of them hassle (except from Bobo of course) she had always been the first into the fray, eyes blazing and daring whoever it was (usually Champ Hardy) to go up against her. How much of this was due to Willa trying to protect the reputation of the Earp's as people who wouldn't be walked over Waverly didn't know but she was grateful for her sister’s interventions, even if it was Wynonna who came to her rescue more often than not.

This protective streak had waned as Waverly had gotten older and Willa had shown less interest in her family and made it her sole mission to get out of Purgatory as soon as humanly possible.

Of course the food wasn't nearly enough to weigh out the bad, hence why only a very small part of Waverly had missed Willa, and even then she knew she wasn't so much missing the eldest Earp but more the feeling of a complete family.

But they hadn't been one of them for many years.

“We sure did.” Wynonna's voice once again filled the silence that had descended on the table at Waverly's admission. “But not you Bobo.”

“You wound me.” Bobo chuckled not looking perturbed in the slightest. “I thought after all these years away you would have acquired some...tolerance for me Wynonna.”

An odd look passes over Wynonna's face at his words, one that Waverly had never seen before, as if she didn't know whether to hit Bobo or run away. It was gone within a second, so fast that Waverly wondered if it had even been there, replaced by a derisive snort and arched eyebrow.

“I'll be tolerant of you Bobo, around the time I become tolerant of genital warts.”

 “Ewwwww Wynonna!” Waverly exclaimed even as Willa made a disgusted noise in her throat.

“What?!”

“You always have to lower the tone!” Willa shook her head but there was a certainly lighter atmosphere than there had been a minute earlier.

Not for the first time Waverly felt grateful to have Wynonna next to her.

* * *

Waverly only managed another few minutes at the table before she was forced to retire to her room, there was only so much sister bonding time she could stomach, and even less time spent around Bobo. That and the drinks she'd consumed earlier had her head feeling a little woozy, making her early morning start at the university the next morning a miserable prospect.

Flopping down on her bed Waverly allowed her mind to wander back to what she had much rather have been thinking about than making small talk with Bobo and Willa; Nicole. The arousal that her earlier encounter with the other woman had caused had abated somewhat, but now that she was alone with little else on her mind it had come back full force.

Waverly was no stranger to intense feelings of passion, whilst Champ may not have been the most fulfilling boyfriend emotionally, he had been more proficient physically. He knew his way around her body well enough, knew how to stoke her arousal and bring her great amounts of pleasure.

Of course this was only when Champ deemed it necessary, which had naturally never been often enough.

Nicole hadn't even kissed in the bar, and yet her body was reacting as if the officer had been touching her all over not just standing a few inches away. Waverly had never wanted to kiss someone as much as she wanted to kiss Nicole, the need was so intense that intense for intense for a b moment Waverly contemplated texting her. A glance at the clock quickly quashed this idea, she might be desperate but she drew the line at dragging Nicole out of bed at half three in the morning.

There was also the issue of whatever Nicole had wanted to tell her instead of kissing her, although Waverly could hardly imagine what Nicole had to say that couldn't have waited until after, and in all honesty she wasn't giving it all that much thought, it was just another obstacle in her way to getting what she wanted.

Waverly hated obstacles.

With a low groan Waverly pressed her thighs together desperate to relieve some of the building pressure as a slew at images flooded her mind unbidden about just what she and Nicole could have gotten up to in the empty bar.

Waverly had done some research; she was a planner after all. As soon as she had realised her crush on Nicole she had done some tentative reading regarding more intimate things two women could get up to. This research had become more in depth as her feelings had developed. She did of course have personal experience, the best sex of her life had been with her mystery female lover. Even though her memory on this was sketchy at best, flashes of passionate kisses wandering lips and talented fingers that gave her enough of an idea that she really, really wanted to try it again.

Preferably with Nicole.

The ache between her legs had reached an unbearable point and without hesitation Waverly slid her right hand down her torso, sighing heavily with relief as her eager fingers reached their destination. Release was the main priority here, and it came quickly as she worked her fingers over herself with practised ease, coming with a low groan, mindful that the others were still awake and sound travelled easily through the old house. Waverly slumped down against her pillows, breath coming in short puffs as she came down from her high. Some of the tension that had been coiled tight in her stomach since Nicole had appeared in the bar earlier that night had abated, but there was still a lingering remnant, an itch that Waverly knew could not be sated on her own.

After heading to the bathroom to splash some cold water on her heated face Waverly came back to bed with a steadfast resolve for the second night in a row.

She was going to get that kiss.

* * *

Waverly was able to sneak out of the house early the next morning without running into Willa, she hoped Bobo hadn't stayed over, the last thing she needed was Bobo worming his way back into the homesteads things were tense enough as it was. She doubted that Wynonna would put up with his presence for any longer than she had to, her sister had little patience for things or people she couldn't stand. It explained why she could never be in Champ's company for more than thirty seconds.

It was a miserable day, the clouds were overcast and grey. threatening rain at any second. Waverly could feel the first few drops hitting her face as she made her way across the yard to her jeep. By the time she pulled out onto the main road heading for the university the rain was pelting down fiercely, drumming on her windscreen loudly. There were few other cars on the road this early and she was able to make it to the university in record time.

Despite being early the history carpark was still mostly full, meaning Waverly had to park night at the back, forcing her to dash through the torrential rain to the building, by the time she made it inside she was soaking wet and shivering.

“Dammit!" she grumbled, sneezing as she shuffled towards her office, trying in vain to squeeze some of the water out her hair.

“Now that is not the language becoming of a young lady."

At Doc’s voice Waverly turned around with a smile, the professor was leaning against the wall a mug of coffee in his hands.

"My apologies, I didn't realise I had company."

''It's no problem, I have always thought women should curse more." Doc chuckled. "Can I interest you in a coffee? You look chilled to the bone."

"A coffee would be great!" Waverly followed Doc into his office, still trying to wring the water from her hair. Doc busied himself with the kettle, whilst Waverly tried to decide the best place to stand where she wasn't dripping everywhere.

"Do please take a seat!" Doc insisted. " Do not worry about the carpet or the chair, they have seen far worse than water in their time."

"I'm not sure I want to know what else they've seen." Waverly wrinkled her nose playfully.  Doc rolled his eyes and handed her a cup of steaming coffee. Waverly accepted it gratefully, sighing softly as the hot liquid warmed her insides.

"You have no idea how much I needed this!'' She groaned happily a few sips later.

"You do look very fatigued my dear, have you been getting a sufficient amount of rest?"

"Not last night, no." Waverly yawned." Willa and Bobo insisted we have a drink."

Doc's face darkened at the mention of Bobo's name. "I had hoped he had left town."

"Oh no, apparently a 'business opportunity' has presented itself to him." Waverly replied.

''Highly illegal then." Doc scoffed, echoing Wynonna’s words from the night before. “I thought Wynonna had kicked him out of your house?”

“She did, I doubt he stayed over last night, but it’s not worth the argument to try and keep him away."

"I take it things are not wholly pleasurable between you and your eldest sister?"

 "You could say that." Waverly snorted. "I think sticking pins in my eyes would be a more pleasurable experience than trying to talk to Willa."

"I believe I have some in my desk." Doc offered, causing Waverly to chuckle.

"Save them, we have no idea how long they're going to be in town so we might have need of them."

"Ah I see, is that why you’re here this early, despite the fact I know you had a closing shift last night."

"Hey, the less time spent in her company is less time spent arguing." Waverly replied. "Besides I had some stuff to take care of last night and this morning." She coughed slightly as she thought about the 'stuff' she had wanted to do the night before

Doc was regarding her with a contemplative look when she pulled her mind out of the gutter and away from all of the things she would have liked to have done to Nicole.

"What?"

"Oh don't mind me." Doc rubbed his moustache with his left hand. “It’s just that there is something different about you my dear it you don't mind my saying so."

"What do you mean?"

"It's difficult to define." Doc mused. "But the last couple of months there has been something that has changed. I do not know what it is."

"I don't know of anything, I'm still the same old Waverly." She gave him a bright smile.

"I will figure it out." Doc promised.

"Let me know if you do." Waverly drained the last of her coffee and stood up. "Thank you for the drink, I'll be on my way and go and drip in my own office."

''Anytime." Doc replied. "Don't be a stranger now! Give my best to your sister."

"I'm sure Willa will. be thrilled." Waverly joked, laughing as Doc rolled his eyes.

"I don't think any of my words for you sister and her vile husband should be heard by delicate female ears."

"Oh please! Anything you've thought of Wynonna has said something ten times worse out loud."

Waverly left the office to the sound of Doc's chuckle.

* * *

It there was one thing guaranteed to bring Waverly Earp's mood down, it was Walking into Shorty's and seeing her ex-boyfriend and eldest sister deep in conversation.

She had been planning on getting through her lunchtime shift as quickly as she could so she could get on with her real objective of the day.

Kissing Nicole.

She had spent then ride over from the University thinking of different approaches, and had narrowed it down to jumping on the officer and surprising her or demanding that Nicole do it. She had been internally debating the pros and cons of each approach when she had spotted Willa and champ seated at the bar.

"Oh brilliant!" Waverly muttered under her breath as she took her place behind the bar and stowed her bag.

''Waverly!" Champ greeted her cheerfully, clearly having forgotten about their altercation the previous week. "You never told me how cool your older sister was; I never spoke to her before because I was always so scared of her."

"And so you should be." Willa chuckled. Champ, thinking she was joking, laughed along with her, but Waverly saw the look in Willa's eyes.

This was not going to be fun for Waverly.

"Champ here was just telling me all about your break up." Willa cocked her head slightly. "He's still very upset." Champ nodded along, pouting his lips and trying to look cute and sympathetic. In reality. just made him look a little simple.

"Well I'm sorry to hear that, but Champ." Waverly shot a withering dare at her ex-boyfriend, who wilted visibly under its intensity. “Needs to realise that we are _not_ getting back together." Champ, thankfully, seemed to get this as his cue to leave and with a hastily muttered excuse he scrambled away as fast as his dignity would let him.

"What was all that about?" Waverly asked suspiciously as she poured a beer for one of the regulars.

“Oh nothing.” Willa shrugged. “Just having a chat with the man who could have been my brother-in-law." She gave a take wistful sigh that had Waverly gritting her teeth.

"I was never going to marry Champ." she replied as levelly as she could.

"well if you ask me you've thrown away your best chance at getting married."

“Good thing I didn’t ask you then, I have no intention of getting married thank you. We can’t all be like you and get married straight out of college."

"It's not like you have men queuing around the corner to be with you, especially as you've made it clear you're not leaving this town anytime soon either." Willa replied viciously.

_It's not a man I want._

Waverly vocalised the thought internally, but just for a moment she wondered how shocked Willa would be if Waverly told her about her new sexual awakening, for a split second she debated telling, if only to see the shock on her sister’s face. But a few seconds of relish would not be worth the grilling and judgement that would come after.

So Waverly kept her mouth shut and contented herself with a muttered, "Whatever."

"Don't sulk Waverly, it's not very grownup."

"I'm not sulking.” Waverly’s teeth were gritted again. "Can I get you anything? I am trying to work."

"Yes, work." Willa gave a slight giggle, showing once again exactly what she thought about Waverly's current career choice. “I’ll have a glass of white wine please, bar wench.”

It took all of Waverly’s self-control not to pour the wine over her head.

Willa continued to be an irritating and demanding presence for the rest of the lunchtime rush, asking Waverly to do the most mundane of tasks such as replacing the ketchup on her table even though she had no intention of eating, or cleaning cutlery that was sparkling to begin with, it turned what should have been a rather quiet, easy four-hour shift into a nightmare. Champ wasn’t helping matters either, trying desperately to get Waverly’s attention any way he could. Clearly Willa had said something to him that had him believing that he had another shit with her.

Waverly had never been so glad to finish as shift.

The rain had eased off somewhat to a light drizzle as Waverly left Shorty’s, but there were heavy dark cloud gathered over the town that looked ready to burst at any second. She had no intention of being caught out in the rain twice in one day.

For a moment Waverly stood outside the bar, unsure of what her next move should be, she’d been full of confidence at the beginning of her shift about going to see Nicole and had even called up the station to make sure the redhead was working. But now it was time to actually do it, Waverly found her confidence wavering somewhat. She couldn’t plan how this was going to go, what if things went wrong, what if she had read the signs wrong?

Before the panic could rise up in her chest and cause her to chicken out she made a decision to throw caution to the wind for once.

What was the worst that could happen?

Setting off at a brisk pace Waverly headed for the police station, praying she didn’t meet anyone she knew who might delay her, which in a town as small as Purgatory was practically a given. Thankfully luck seemed to be on her side, the grey threatening clouds keeping people inside and she made it to the station unimpeded.

Officer Paul Smith was behind the desk again, greeting Waverly with his customary bright smile.

“Hello Miss Earp. What brings you here, we don’t have Wynonna here today!” he joked with a light chuckle.

“Not here for her. Where’s Nicole?” Waverly knew her words were short, but she was working hard to keep her nerve and didn’t have much patience for politeness.

“Officer Haught?” Paul looked a little confused at the intensity of Waverly’s question. “I believe she’s on a break.” Waverly sighed, just her luck she wasn’t here. “The last I saw her she was working out.”

Waverly perked up at Paul’s next words and headed off eagerly in the direction he pointed in throwing a thank you over her shoulder.

As she reached the station’s gym Waverly could hear the soft grunts of someone working out inside and felt her heart rate begin to quicken in anticipation at what lay waiting behind the door for her.

She couldn’t believe she was about to do this.

With slightly shaky hands Waverly reached out and pushed the door open. The sight that greeted her made her throat go dry.

Nicole was on the floor, body rising and falling effortlessly as she did press up after press up. A thin sheen of sweat covered the skin of her lower back and arms which were exposed by her sports bra, Waverly watched with widened eyes as the muscles in the officer’s arms rippled and flexed as she pushed herself off the floor.

Nicole hadn’t noticed her yet as she got back to her feet and began to stretch, her breath was slightly laboured and Waverly immediately wanted to be the reason that Nicole was out of breath and started forward, mouth opening to alert the other woman to her presence.

It was then that she noticed the tattoo.

As Nicole turned her torso it became visible on her left shoulder blade. At this distance Waverly couldn’t tell what it was, but it looked a little like a star.

The thought stopped her dead.

Time seemed to slow as she was transported back to _that_ morning in _that_ bed looking at _that_ tattoo on the left shoulder blade of her mystery lover.

“Oh my god. It was you.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DUN DUN DUN! I know right finally?! You probably all hate me for leaving it there but the next chapter is coming within the next couple of days (I hope). Let me know what you thought about it in the comments, leave kudos and come and chat to me on Tumblr.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really sorry this was longer than the couple of days I promised, especially after the cliffhanger I left it on. I had a busy week at work and past me hadn't helped things when drafting this chapter by leaving little notes on my drafts saying things like 'expand this' or 'more here' not helpful when present me comes to writing it up! 
> 
> I hope this chapter makes up for the wait you've had to endure. This chapter is mostly a flashback and is where the story earns it's M rating so that's your reward for being patient with my somewhat erratic updating schedule. 
> 
> Thank you for the amazing response to the last chapter! It really warms my heart whenever I see a new comment or kudos so thank you and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

“Oh my god. It was you.”

At Waverly’s croaked admission Nicole spun around, the smile that had formed at hearing Waverly’s voice dimming as she took in the other woman’s wide eyes and hand pointing at her, fingers shaking.

“Waverly, what’s…?”

“It was you!” Waverly’s voice found strength and cut her off. “That night, that tattoo! It was you I woke up in bed with!”

Nicole’s face drained of colour and she started forward immediately. “Waverly, I tried to…” she stopped talking again as Waverly raised a hand, her brain still trying to comprehend what was going on.

The previously fragmented flashes of the night that had changed her life were slowly becoming clearer and clearer by the second. With a force akin to a blow to the stomach Waverly was assaulted by the complete memories, the force of them so strong that she had to sit down, sliding down the nearest wall she hit the floor, ignoring Nicole’s voice that she knew was near her, but sounded muffled, as if far away.

Blocking out the outside world Waverly lost herself in the memories.

**_A couple of months earlier…_ **

_She pounds back the newest shot that Chrissy has pressed into her hands, wincing at the bitter taste._

_“Tequila? Really?!”_

_“Absolutely!” Chrissy replies with a wide grin. “The best method to stop an Earp sister bust up is Tequila!” A quick glance at Wynonna shows her sister was wincing too, but already reaching for another shot. Waverly waves away another from Chrissy, still not over the bitter taste of the last one._

_“So Waverly, anyone in here catch your eye?” Wynonna calls out, shot in her hand._

_“No, and for the last time Wynonna, I’m not having sex tonight!” her sister just laughs in response._

_“Keep telling yourself that baby girl, but you’re wound tighter than a coiled spring! You need a good orgasm!”_

_“Oh my god!” Waverly covers her ears. “That’s disgusting!” Wynonna and Chrissy are both laughing. “I need to pee!”_

_“Too much information baby girl.” Wynonna snorts around her glass, Waverly responds with her middle finger before pushing her way through the crowds in the direction of the toilet._

_Naturally there’s a massive queue._

_It takes Waverly almost twenty minutes to get out of the toilets and back to the table, but Wynonna and Chrissy have gone and a quick glance around shows them nowhere in the vicinity._

_“Crap.” Momentarily at a loss at what to do she decides that the bar is probably the best place to locate her sister and best friend. It didn’t hurt either that she can get another drink whilst she was there._

_The bar is heaving, but she is able to use her small stature to her advantage and slip between people until she’s at the front, to the displeasure of a few people behind her. Wynonna and Chrissy aren’t here either, which leads Waverly to believe they must be outside smoking. Resolving to find them after this drink, she orders another cocktail, it arrives a minute later, large and colourful in the dim light of the bar._

_She moves away, drink clasped in her hands, so focused on taking the first sip that she doesn’t look where she’s going, that’s when someone collides hard with her front, upending the drink all over her dress._

_“Oh my god! I am so sorry!” a voice sounds above her, she glances up, ready to rip a new one into whatever jackass wasn’t looking where they were going._

_She’s met instead with concerned,_ very _apologetic face of an incredibly beautiful woman, so beautiful that for a moment Waverly forgets why she’s supposed to be angry, it drains away from her as the woman gives her a nervous smile._

_“Are you ok?” the words are shouted near her ear, above the pounding of the music._

_“I’m fine, just a little sticky.” She shouts back, having to rock up on her toes to be heard._

_“I’m very sorry.” The woman apologises again, eyes that even in the darkness Waverly can somehow see are a beautiful shade of brown are shining brightly. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”_

_“It’s fine really.” Waverly brushes away the apology. “I wasn’t being very aware either, much too focused on the first sip of my drink.” She holds up the almost empty glass to illustrate her point._

_The woman laughs, a beautiful sound. “It did look very good, allow me to buy you another to make up for spilling that one.”_

_There was no way she was going to say no, not when the other woman was smiling at her like that, dimples on full display._

_“Ok.” The woman moves away into the crowd, leaving her standing on her own, still clutching her glass and smiling like a fool._

_This smile dims as a drunken face fills her vision. It’s Gary, another of her high school classmates, vice-captain of the football team and another of the popular crowd of Stephanie Jones’ ilk._

_“Hey Waverly!” he slurs, taking a long drag from his bottle. “I heard you and Champ broke up.”_

_“Yeah we did.”_

_“I’m sorry to hear that, you doing ok?” to his credit Gary does actually look concerned._

_“I’m doing very well thank you Gary.” She replies politely._

_“Good, good.” Gary sways a little awkwardly on his feet a nervous look flashing across his handsome features. “So, can I buy you a drink?” he asks, gesturing to the bar._

_“Oh, that’s very sweet Gary, but I already have one coming.” Her eyes dart away from Gary as she replies to see if she can spot the beautiful stranger coming back with their drinks._

_“Oh, right.” Gary looks disappointed but he bounces back quickly. “So how come you’re drinking out of town and not at Shorty’s don’t you get free drinks?”_

_“Because, contrary to popular belief I don’t see a night in Shorty’s as the definition of a good time.”_

_Gary looks a little confused at her derisive tone but once again bounces back. “That makes sense, it’s nice to be away from the entire town sometimes. Do you fancy a dance?” he shoots her an easy smile, one that has worked on many a girl back in school. After Champ he had been the most popular guy in high school and like Champ he was used to getting his way._

_“No thanks Gary.” She replies with a smile of her own, hoping that he’ll get the hint._

_Unfortunately, the alcohol has dulled his already few senses._

_“Come on Waverly.” His voice has taken on that whiny edge that all men in their town seemed to have when they didn’t get their own way, he moved forward, one hand resting on her hip. “Dance with me and I can make you forget all about Champ.” His voice drips with suggestion and she barely represses a shudder._

_“I said no thanks.” She repeated firmly, taking a step backwards, he follows, a frown marring his features._

_“Why? Am I not good enough?” his tone is hurt but the resolve with which he walks forward is a little daunting._

_“It’s not about that Gary. I’ve_ just _broken up with Champ, I’m not looking for anything with anyone!” she’s starting to get annoyed._

_“You think you’re too good for me.” Gary sniffs. “What you can’t give me one dance? Just one dance?” he reaches out and wraps an arm around her waist, ignoring her outraged squeal._

_“Gary no!”_

_“Do we have a problem here?” a hard voice shouts behind them, Waverly spins and is flooded with relief when to see the beautiful stranger has returned, two drinks clasped in her hands and face set in a hard line._

_“What’s it got to do with you?” Gary responds. “This is between me and her. Get lost!”_

_“I believe the young lady has made it quite clear she does not want to dance.” The woman replies, voice remaining level but with a hard undertone._

_“Thank you so much for my drink!” Waverly gushes, deftly sliding out of Gary’s grasp and moving to take her drink._

_Gary it seems isn’t so ready to give up and moves to follow her. “The lady and I were talking.” He growls._

_“You need to take a step back.” The woman responds with her own growl, a growl that Waverly finds instantly very attractive._

_“Or what?” Gary sneers._

_The woman draws herself up to her full height. “Or you_ will _regret it.”_

_Gary seems to deflate a little under her steely gaze. “Well, you know, it’s not worth it.” he mutters finally before slouching away into the crowd._

_“Thank you!” Waverly shouts into her saviour’s ear as soon as he’s gone._

_“You’re very welcome.” The woman smiles back, dimples popping._

_“Am I allowed to know the name of my rescuer?”_

_“Nicole.” The woman responds, holding out a hand._

_“Waverly.” They shake hands and Waverly marvels at how soft the skin is._

_“Lovely to meet you Waverly.” Nicole grins again and Waverly can’t help but think how nice a smile it is, it’s at that moment she realises that she’s still holding onto Nicole’s hand, she releases it quickly._

_“Well I should get going.” Nicole says even as Waverly blurts out._

_“Would you like to join me?” she doesn’t know why she asks, all she does know is that she’s not ready for the other woman to leave yet._

_She tells herself it’s the alcohol._

_“Sure.” Nicole nods, gesturing for Waverly to lead the way. As they squeeze through the crowd Nicole places a hand on the small of Waverly’s back, helping to guide her._

_She tries not to think about how much she enjoys the contact._

_They end up sitting in a small booth, close together. The noise of the bar is too loud for them to have a proper conversation, as such the only thing she is able to learn is that Nicole has just moved into town and will be joining the Purgatory Sheriff’s Department the next week._

_The light is a little better in the booth and Waverly can now see that Nicole’s hair is a vibrant red, a shade that suits her perfectly. She’s also stunningly beautiful and Waverly can’t seem to help the surge of lust that courses through her body every time Nicole’s skin brushes against hers._

_Which is often._

_Feather light touches against her hand and arm send butterflies through her stomach, then there’s the moments when Nicole’s lips brush against her ear as she has to lean in particularly close to speak to her. Each time it happens she has to repress a shudder._

_She’s never had feelings like this before, such instant feelings of attraction and definitely not for a woman, they’re new, they’re scary, but at the same time oh so exciting. The alcohol in her system is helping her to be bolder than she usually might otherwise be, because she’s pretty sure Nicole is flirting with her. And she’s flirting back._

_Eventually she leans forward, her turn to ghost her lips over the taller woman’s ear, taking small delight in feeling Nicole swallow hard at the motion._

_“Want to dance?” the request is murmured as silkily as she can manage._

_Nicole nods, knocking back the rest of her drink, her second since they sat down at the table. Waverly follows suit, allowing the buzz of the alcohol to fuel her courage to pull Nicole to her feet and drag her out onto the dancefloor. It’s packed which means they have to stand close together, not that Waverly minds. For the first couple of songs they dance around one another awkwardly, each learning how the others moves. Despite the packed dance floor Nicole keeps a respectable distance between them, despite Waverly’s desire to be closer._

_The next song that came on is fast, made for close dancing and Waverly, head spinning slightly from the alcohol reaches out and pulls Nicole closer, so their hips are pressed together. Even over the loud music she can hear Nicole’s sharp intake of breath, or she can feel I she doesn’t know anymore. All she knows is that for the first time in what felt like forever she feels free, no obligations, no responsibilities, no thought of tomorrow, only tonight._

_Only the music, loud and heavy in her ears, the alcohol, which is making her feel light, bold, spontaneous, and last but not least, the beautiful woman in front of her who she knows next to nothing about, but right now, all she wants, is Nicole’s hands on her._

_Nicole is a surprisingly good dancer, body matching hers on every beat. Her hands, which before had been hanging awkwardly by her side are now on Waverly’s hips, guiding her movements. Feeling even bolder Waverly turns in her arms, sliding her body sensually down Nicole’s and then back up again, hands rising up and behind her head to tangle in the other woman’s soft hair. Nicole’s hips move in time with her own, pelvis pressing against her ass and the swell of her breasts on her back. Her hands are trailing fire around Waverly’s waist, along the strip of skin on show from her crop top, pulling her closer._

_Waverly can’t help the soft moan that slips past her lips and Nicole’s mouth brushes against her neck, the brief contact sending a shiver down her spine. She knows Nicole can feel it, her lips curling up in a smirk against Waverly’s skin._

_It crosses Waverly’s mind that there could be people that she knows watching them, people who might talk, after all, Chrissy and Wynonna are somewhere in the bar. Usually this would bother her._

_But not tonight._

_Tonight Waverly doesn’t care what other people may be thinking, she wants to let go, tonight she wants something thing, all thoughts of taking it easy after her break up with Champ gone as her mind is dominated by one, singular thought._

_She wants Nicole._

_“Do you want to go out for some fresh air?” Nicole’s question comes a few songs later. They’re both panting slightly, partly from the exertion of dancing, and partly from the desire that’s crackling between them like electricity. Nicole’s lips have been placing kisses along the length of Waverly’s neck for the last couple of songs and it has been driving her mad. She nods immediately at the redhead’s question and without hesitation grabs her hand and pulls her towards the smokers exit._

_There are a few people milling around outside, plumes of smoke floating out of their mouths and up into the night air. Wynonna and Chrissy are not among them and Waverly is instantly grateful, she doesn’t want to explain what she’s doing, she just wants to do it._

_She leads Nicole around the corner away from the smokers, to a place of relative privacy. The noise of the bar is muffled here, the music barely discernible. For the first time in a few hours she’s able to hear herself think, and is thankful that for once her over active brain seems to have calmed down a little._

_Both women watch each other in silence for a moment, nervousness overtaking them for the first time that evening._

_“So,” Nicole breaks the silence with a soft chuckle._

_“So,”_

_“You’re a very good dancer.” Nicole’s voice is a little husky from all the shouting they’ve had to do and if anything, it makes her even more attractive. A feat Waverly did not think possible._

_“So are you.” She leans back against the wall of the bar, the solid brickwork helping to keep her upright. “Do you always behave so intimately with your dance partners?” she arches a coy eyebrow._

_To her credit Nicole doesn’t blush, a sultry smirk spreading across her face instead, dimples being shown for full effect._

_“Only the very special ones.”_

_“You’ve only just met me; how can you know I’m one of the special ones?”_

_“I have an eye for these kinds of things.” Nicole takes a few steps forward, bringing her within a few feet of Waverly. She’s wearing a navy blue button down shirt with block skinny jeans, the look complemented perfectly by her fiery head. Waverly forces her hands to stay by her sides and not reach out to toy with the buttons of Nicole’s shirt._

_“Is that so.”_

_“Yes.” Nicole’s now next to her, one hand leaning up against the wall, smirk still firmly in place. “It comes with being in law enforcement, we have very keen observational skills.”_

_“And what have you been observing Officer?” Waverly deliberately drops her voice on the last word, the effect immediate in Nicole’s darkening eyes._

_“Well, I’ve already mentioned your dancing.” Nicole cocks her head to one side. “Then there’s your eyes.”_

_“My eyes?”_

_“Yes, they’re…captivating.” Waverly feels a blush rising in her cheeks at the words._

_“Anything else?” she manages, breath catching in her throat at the intense way Nicole is looking at her._

_“Your lips.” Nicole’s eyes flicker down as she moves a little closer. Their proximity should be a problem, Waverly barely knows this person, coupled with the fact that she’s a woman this should have Waverly dashing inside and away._

_But she doesn’t._

_In that moment she feels nothing but safe, the way Nicole is looking at her is a way nobody has ever looked at her before. There’s definite lust swirling in the taller woman’s eyes but at the same time there’s a careful respect, every move Nicole is making is only being made when she is sure that it’s what Waverly wants._

_“What about my lips?”_

_“How they’d feel against mine.” Nicole murmurs a response, immediately looking surprised as if she didn’t mean to speak aloud. “I’m sorry, that was far too forward. Please ignore that.”_

_“It’s ok.” Waverly reaches out and grabs Nicole’s hand, entwining their fingers and squeezing softly to reassure her. “Have your keen officer eyes observed anything else in the bar tonight?”_

_“To be honest, I’ve only ever had eyes for one beautiful girl.” Nicole replies sincerely._

_For a second after she speaks there’s silence then both of them laugh at the same time, Nicole’s face flushing slightly._

_“God that was so corny and clichéd I’m sorry!” she laughs rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly. “I’m blaming the alcohol for that one.” She pulls back slightly._

_“No, don’t be sorry.” Waverly sniggers, pulling on Nicole’s hand to bring her back close again. “It was actually very sweet, in a clichéd way.” Another snicker. “I’m blaming the alcohol for it working! If I was sober I’d definitely be telling you to leave after that!”_

_“So you want me to stick around?” Nicole is closer than ever, face a few inches away from her own, one hand resting on Waverly’s waist._

_“I do.” Nicole’s voice is low but Nicole hears it thanks to their proximity._

_“I’m glad to hear it.” Nicole murmurs back, hand tightening around her waist even as Waverly’s index finger slips through Nicole’s belt loop, pulling their hips closer together. Nicole’s breath hitches as Waverly tilts her face up towards hers, their lips barely brushing._

_Suddenly her new found confidence fails her and she turns her head at the last moment, causing Nicole’s mouth to awkwardly bump against her cheek._

_“I am so sorry.” Nicole replies immediately, head jerking back. “That was stupid of me, I shouldn’t have tried to kiss you. I wasn’t…”_

_“Nicole! It’s not your fault!” Waverly cuts off her apologetic rambling. “It’s me.”_

_Nicole bobs her head, nodding curtly. “I shouldn’t have assumed you wanted to, I was clearly wrong.”_

_“You didn’t assume wrong, I didn’t…_ not _want it.” Waverly ventures hesitantly. Nicole glances up sharply, eyes clouding with confusion. “It’s just…” Waverly takes a deep breath, dropping Nicole’s hand to run it through her hair, keeping the other one looped in Nicole’s belt, needing the contact._

_“It’s ok Waverly. You don’t have to explain.” Nicole’s voice is gentle, her presence comforting._

_“I do.” She takes a deep breath. “It’s just, I broke up with my boyfriend today.”_

_“Oh, I see. Had you been together long?”_

_“On and off since high school. He wasn’t the most…faithful.”_

_“Oh I’m sorry to hear that.” Nicole’s expression softens and she looks like she wants to pull Waverly in for a hug, but stops herself at the last minute._

_Waverly wishes she hadn’t._

_“I broke up with my girlfriend a few weeks ago so I know it can be tough.” Nicole hesitates a little at the word ‘girlfriend’ as if the fact they had been a hairs breadth away from kissing a moment ago hadn’t been a massive giveaway that she liked women._

_“Oh, how comes, if you don’t mind my asking”_

_“She didn’t appreciate my change in locations.” Nicole glances up to the clear night air. “Something about there not being nothing to do in the country.”_

_“Ah well, I mean we make our own entertainment with tin cans and wooden spoons.” She jokes causing Nicole to chuckle._

_“I’ve never done anything like that.” Waverly breaks the silence that descends before it has a chance to properly form._

_“Like what?”_

_“Just upped and moved away, started afresh.” Waverly looks a little wistfully and into the dark as if she can see all her missed opportunities. “I’ve always wanted to be adventurous you know? Do the things that scare me a little. My whole life I’ve done everything expected of me, never really strayed out of my comfort zone, I’ve stayed in the small town, dated the captain of the football team. Soon enough I’ll be expected to settle down and have babies I guess.” She’s rambling and she knows it, but it’s so good to get it off her chest. “Just once I want someone to ask me what_ I _want!”_

_“What do you want Waverly?” Nicole asks softly._

_“I want to travel the world; I want to see the places that I’ve spent my entire life reading about, I want to meet people who think in completely different ways to me and see the world in a completely different way, and I want so many things that I haven’t even thought about yet!” She hesitates briefly. “I know…I shouldn’t want to kiss you.” She says truthfully. “But I really do.”_

_Nicole looks a little taken aback, but recovers quickly, dimples reappearing with a bright smile._

_“I shouldn’t want to kiss you so soon after breaking up with my boyfriend, I told myself that I wasn’t coming out tonight to get with anyone, that it was just a way to unwind. But, ever since you bumped into me I’ve not been able to take my fucking eyes off you, wondering what it would be like to kiss you.”_

_“That’s the alcohol talking.” Nicole blushes for the first time._

_“Maybe a little.” Waverly admits. “But it’s saying the things I’m otherwise too scared to say.” A soft tug at Nicole’s belt loops betrays her nervousness. “It would be a very adventurous thing to do.” The last bit is said more for herself but still makes Nicole smile, as she ducks her head again._

_When Nicole looks up again there’s a smouldering look in her eyes, one that sends a surge of arousal pooling low in Waverly’s stomach._

_“So tell me Waverly, just how adventurous are you feeling this evening?” Nicole asks, voice low and husky._

_Waverly decides in that moment to stop overthinking this._

_“Adventurous enough.” With a sharp tug at Nicole’s belt she pulls the redhead forward, connecting their lips roughly before she can stop herself._

_If Nicole is surprised she doesn’t show it, lips moving against Waverly’s, setting the pace for them both._

_The kiss starts slowly, both women taking the time to learn about each other, but the longer it lasts the more Waverly can feel her need building. A need to have this woman naked against her._

_Nicole hums in surprise when Waverly’s tongue sweeps across her lower lip, mouth opening to the silent request. Their tongues brushing together adds a whole new dimension to the kiss, one that makes Waverly feel a little light headed._

_Although that can also be attributed to the alcohol._

_The need for air drives them apart, breath coming hard and fast Nicole presses her forehead to Waverly’s, eyes wide and searching as if she’s struggling to comprehend what’s going on._

_“Wow! That was…” Nicole pauses to take a deep breath, words failing her. “Have you ever...?” She trails off again, a faint blush colouring her cheeks as she gestures between the two of them._

_“Kissed a woman?” Waverly guessed what she’s getting at, Nicole nods. “No, but…I want to do it again.” Pulling sharply on Nicole’s belt Waverly reconnects their lips with such force that Nicole has to steady herself against the wall with one hand, her body pressed deliciously against the length of Waverly’s. Her other hand is still on Waverly’s hip, fingers digging into the soft skin there as Waverly once again deepens the kiss, tongue thrusting into Nicole’s mouth. The redhead is happy for her to set the pace this time, an opportunity that Waverly relishes, hand sliding up Nicole’s back before raking back down, applying just enough pressure to have Nicole hissing into her mouth._

_“Jesus!” Nicole’s grip on her hip tightened and Waverly can’t help but smirk at the reaction that she has caused._

_This smirk dies as Nicole bites down on her lower lip._

_The moan that bubbles up in her throat is louder than she thought possible, but is quickly swallowed by Nicole’s next bruising kiss. Waverly’s hands have settled around the taller woman’s neck and she pulls her closer, fingers carding through soft red hair._

_“Nicole.” Waverly breathes when they part again. “Take me home.”_

_Nicole doesn’t reply for a moment, looking at Waverly with wide shocked eyes. “I…are you sure, I mean…you’ve never…you’ve been drinking. I don’t want to…”_

_“Nicole.” The redhead stops her rambling as Waverly grabs the front of her shirt, fisting the material tightly in her hands. “My head is clear enough to know that I really want to go home with you.” She whispers against Nicole’s lips, feeling the other woman’s breath hitch._

_Not wanting to wait any longer, she pushes away from the wall, pulling a still slightly dazed looking Nicole behind her, back through the still packed bar, through all the people and out into the street. Nicole’s look oh shock deepens when Waverly puts her free hand in her mouth and whistles loudly, bringing a cab screeching to a halt in front of them._

_“Woah.”_

_Nicole barely manages to get her address out to the driver as Waverly tugs her into the back of the car. “That was pretty impressive.”_

_“I’m full of surprises.” Waverly murmurs, scooting closer her._

_“I don’t doubt that.” Nicole allows Waverly to pull her forward by the front of her shirt, fusing their lips._

_The taxi ride passes in something of a blur for Waverly, she has no idea where they’re going, no idea how much time has passed, all she knows is that in that moment all she can focus on is the feeling of Nicole’s mouth on hers._

_“Are you sure you want to do this?” Nicole pulls away briefly to ask, “I can ask them to take you home?”_

_“Please stop talking.” Waverly’s already pulling her back in, her mind was made up long before they got in the taxi._

_Nicole doesn’t speak for the rest of the ride home; her lips were much too busy._

_They separate long enough for Nicole to pay the driver and guide them into the apartment building, in the lift up to Nicole’s flat Waverly has the taller woman pressed against the wall, hands once again fisting her shirt in desperate hands as they kiss._

_The pinging of the doors opening pulls them apart, Nicol gives her a soft smile and taking her hand leads her to the door farthest away from the left. As the redhead fumbles with her keys Waverly tries desperately to keep her hands to herself, failing miserably when she gives into temptation, fingers sliding around Nicole’s waist as she pushes herself up onto her toes to plant a couple of kisses behind Nicole’s ears. A very noticeable shudder passes through Nicole’s body and she almost drops her keys._

_Finally, the door swings open and Nicole barely has time to pull the keys out of the lock before Waverly is pulling her into the room. For a moment they stand in the middle of the darkened room, kissing passionately. Waverly toys with the buttons on Nicole’s shirt, slowly popping them open, peeling away the material. Nicole’s lips are trailing across her jaw and the sensation is causing an ache to start between Waverly’s legs._

_“Bedroom?” she murmurs as Nicole presses a kiss behind her ear._

_“Over there.” Nicole points behind her. In the dark Waverly can’t see her features but she can see her eyes shining in the moonlight that trickles through one window, the expression in them is one of wonderment as Nicole looks at her. So soft, so tender, but with a bubbling passion under the surface that ignites something in Waverly, bolstering her already overflowing confidence, leading her to tug up gently on Nicole’s hands, guiding in the direction Nicole had indicated._

_Waverly doesn’t stop moving until the back of her knees hit the bad, forcing her into a seated position. Parting her legs, she pulls Nicole to stand between them, gazing up at the redhead she lets out a breath she feels like she’s been holding in since their lips first met outside the bar. The moonlight is stronger here and she can see that Nicole is looking down at her with the same tender expression, one that causes a low fluttering in her stomach._

_“Waverly.” Her name falls from Nicole’s lips almost like a plea as her hands ghost over the exposed skin of her stomach, she can’t help but be entranced by how soft the skin beneath her fingertips is, so different to what she’s used to. On impulse she leans forward to plant an open mouthed kiss against Nicole’s abs, smiling as she feels the muscles jump at the attention and Nicole’s sharp intake of breath._

_“Waverly!” Nicole almost moans at Waverly’s explorations get higher until her lips are brushing the underside of Nicole’s plain black bra and her hands are splayed out across Nicole’s ribs. “Wait, wait.” Placing her hands on Waverly’s face she directs her gaze upwards, eyes locking on hers._

_“Are you sure you really want to do this? Because we don’t have to do anything. I’d be happy just to hold you.” The words are spoken with such sincerity that Waverly feels her heart skip a beat. There’s no lie in Nicole’s eyes, only genuine affection mixed with mild concern._

_The redhead’s right hand comes up, brushing against Waverly’s cheek with the barest of touches, Waverly leans into it, eyes closing and a shaky breath leaving her. In that moment her mind is made up more resolutely than before._

_She wants Nicole._

_She gives her answer without speaking, swiftly pulling her shirt up over her head she leans up to claim the taller woman’s lips in a searing kiss that takes her breath away. Falling back against the bed she pulls Nicole on top of her, hands moving to tangle in fiery red hair. Nicole’s weight feels comfortable on top of her, not too light, not too heavy and Waverly moans softly as one of Nicole’s thighs slips between her legs, pressing gently against her centre._

_Dropping her hands to Nicole’s hips Waverly urges her to repeat the motion, a groan bubbling low in her throat as fresh pleasure sparks in her stomach. Nicole’s lips leave hers, moving gently down her jawline and to her neck, teeth nipping sharply at her pulse point at the same time as she gives a very slow, deliberate roll of her hips._

_“Oh god!” Waverly’s fingers clasp desperately at Nicole’s back, realising only then that the other woman still has her shirt on, deciding this needs to be rectified immediately she tugs at the material impatiently. Nicole is forced to sit back up again, resting on her knees between Waverly’s legs divesting herself of her shirt. Within seconds it’s on the floor and Nicole is back on top of her, lips pressing against the underside of Waverly’s jaw as her fingers ghost over her sides._

_Waverly relishes in the new expanse of skin to explore, raking her nails down Nicole’s back, feeling the muscles twitch at her explorations. Nicole responds with another sharp nip to her neck, before returning her lips to Waverly’s for another bruising kiss._

_“Are you ok?” she breathes when they part again, leaning her forehead against Waverly’s._

_“I’ll be better when this comes off.” Waverly smirks, running her hands up Nicole’s chest, over her bra clad breasts._

_Nicole is happy to oblige, reaching behind her and undoing the clasp, the bra joining her shirt on the floor. Waverly sits up as Nicole’s breasts are revealed to her in the moonlight, eyes widening and hands tentatively coming, brushing with feather light touches on Nicole’s ribs, before faltering right on the underside of the other woman’s breasts._

_“Can I…?” she glances up to Nicole who gives her a soft smile, reaching out and guiding Waverly’s hands onto her chest. Nicole’s eyes drift shut as Waverly’s fingers ghost over a nipple, the peak hardening under her deft fingers, the soft sighs leaving the taller woman’s lips are enough to spur Waverly on, her touches becoming firmer, cupping the fullness of Nicole’s left breast._

_It’s not long before Waverly has both hands on Nicole’s chest, kneading the flesh gently, prompted on by the mewls of encouragement Nicole is making, leaning forward Waverly presses her lips to Nicole’s collar bone, scraping her teeth along the skin much like Nicole had done only moments before. This motion is well received, Nicole’s fingers thread themselves into Waverly’s hair, pulling her up for another kiss before her hands make their own journey down to the clasp on Waverly’s bra. Pulling back Nicole’s eyes flash to Waverly’s, the silent request answered by a nod from the brunette._

_Waverly expects Nicole to mimic her own actions, but is very surprised when the other woman ducks her head, mouth closing unexpectedly around a nipple. Her head flies back and she moans loudly as Nicole’s tongue swirls expertly around the small bud, the other hand lavishing attention on the other breast as she does so. Her whole body feels like jelly, she’s more turned on than she has ever been in her life and the feeling of Nicole’s tongue on her sensitive skin is driving her to distraction._

_Nicole gently guides her onto her back, mouth still exploring her chest, alternating between soft kisses that she can barely feel and bites that Waverly knows are going to leave red marks speckled all over her breasts in the morning. But she doesn’t care, there’s a part of her that’s thrilled by the prospect of Nicole marking her. The hand that isn’t propping her up has drifted down Waverly’s stomach, tracing the line of her trousers, threatening to dip below the waistband but never actually doing it, soon her lips are following the path of her hand, kissing over Waverly’s abdomen, teeth scrapping over twitching muscles, tongue gliding over smooth skin._

_“Nicole, please!” she whines, she’s still half-dressed and yet she can feel pleasure like she’s never experienced building low in her stomach, every second that goes by without Nicole touching her where she really needs it feels like an eternity, and she’s done waiting._

_Deciding to take matters into her own hands she fumbles with the buttons on her trousers with shaky hands, cursing softly when the button refuses to pop out of its holding. Nicole’s steady hands cover her own and looking up she sees the redhead looking at her tenderly, she presses a kiss to each of Waverly’s knuckles before climbing up to hover above her, tucking a stray bit of hair behind her ear._

_The button pops open for Nicole on the first try and after pressing a chaste kiss to her lips Nicole leans back slowly pulling the material down Waverly’s legs, before the trousers have hit the floor Nicole is back between her legs, rolling her hips to press her thighs into her centre again. Waverly’s head lolls back into the pillow, eyes fluttering closed as Nicole starts to rock gently, lips exploring her upper chest and neck._

_“Tell me what you want.” Nicole whispers into her ear, teeth closing around the lobe._

_“I want…” her breath is ragged as she tries to concentrate long enough to form a coherent sentence. “God, Nicole I want you to touch me.” She punctuates her need by digging her nails into Nicole’s back, pushing her hips up to meet the next thrust of her thigh._

_Suddenly the pressure is gone and Waverly instantly misses it, her body crying out for attention, lifting her head to see that Nicole is leaning back on her haunches again, fingers curling into the waistband of the final barrier of clothing. Waverly can only watch with rapt attention as Nicole peels her panties down her legs._

_For a moment Nicole just stares, eyes raking up and down Waverly’s body in a way that should make her feel embarrassed, want to cover up. But she doesn’t, the fire in Nicole’s eyes, the pure lust but at the same time the caring undertone, like Waverly has given her a gift she can never repay, stops any blush rising to her cheeks and if anything, turns her on more._

_Nicole’s examination of her body lasts a few seconds before she’s leaning down again, pressing hot open mouthed kisses to Waverly’s neck and up to her mouth. It’s like the sight of her naked body has awoken something in the redhead, her hands are wandering over any part of skin she can reach, her lips finding Waverly’s in a passionate kiss that is all tongues and teeth. Nicole’s right hand is running flat down her stomach, pushing further down than before until her fingertips are raking through soft curls, Waverly’s breath hitching as_ finally _Nicole’s fingers ghost over where she needs them most._

_Pulling back from their kiss Nicole’s eyes find hers again, with a stare so intense that for a moment Waverly can’t move, she can’t do anything other than stare back into the eyes of the woman who up until a few hours ago was nothing more than a complete stranger and was now looking at her, seeing all of her and making her feel things she had never felt before. It was quite a lot to take in and Waverly felt her breath catch in her throat, the intense rush of feelings that sweep over her in that moment causing her to pull Nicole down into a kiss that she hopes conveys everything she’s thinking but can’t begin to say._

_Nicole seems to read the permission in her kiss because a second later her fingers begin to move gently through Waverly’s wet folds, fingertips skirting around Waverly’s throbbing clit. Waverly almost chocked with relief when Nicole’s index finger finally presses against the engorged bundle of nerves, with soft but precise circles, each one sending a spasm of pleasure rocketing around her body._

_For a few moments Nicole does nothing but stroke Waverly’s clit, hard enough to push her closer and closer to release, but never hard enough to give her what she really needs, it is both delicious and torture in equal measure and Waverly can’t decide if she wants it to go on forever or end now, her mind having trouble focusing on any one thing._

_“You are so beautiful.” Nicole’s voice is husky by her ear, fingers moving down gently down to Waverly’s entrance pausing on the way to coat themselves liberally in her arousal, it was here she pauses, eyes once again searching Waverly’s long and hard. Waverly knows what she’s looking for and gives her a small nod, she wants this, more than she has ever wanted anything._

_When Nicole thrusts one of her fingers gently inside her Waverly’s head slams back into the pillow, a loud moan ripping from her throat, fingernails cutting into Nicole’s upper arms as the redhead pulls out and thrusts back in, a little harder this time, drawing a fresh moan from Waverly. Nicole’s lips move over her jaw as she sets an almost leisurely pace, once again inching her closer but never quite getting there. If the smirk she can feel curling against her neck is any indication Nicole knows exactly what’s she’s doing and what it’s doing to Waverly._

_Deciding that she needs to gain back some of the upper hand Waverly slides one hand into Nicole’s hair, directing her lips back to her own, sinking her teeth into the other woman’s lower lip, swallowing the moan that slips out of Nicole’s mouth even as her other hand snakes between them and palms at Nicole’s right breast. The effects of this are instantaneous, Nicole’s thrusts grow harder, with the addition of a second finger a moment later causing Waverly to arch her back off the bed and her teeth to sink into Nicole’s shoulder where her mouth has been placing long kisses. Nicole hisses at the pain but if anything it spurs her movements on, using the momentum of her hips to get a better angle of her thrusts._

_The pressure that has been building slowly up until this point is now raging like an inferno, galloping rapidly towards release and there’s little else that Waverly can do other than hold on for dear life and trust Nicole to push her over the edge._

_“Ugh, Nicole!” the other woman’s name bursts from her lips as the redhead’s fingers curl inside her and her teeth and lips sucks hard on her pulse point which must be working overtime. Her breath comes in ragged pants as she approaches the edge with alarming rate. “Oh, shit! Oh fuck, Ni…”_

_“Come for me Waverly.” Those four words are all it takes for Waverly to tumble into the abyss, she can’t see anything but the blackness behind her own eyelids, can’t hear anything but the pounding of her heart loud in her ears, can’t feel anything but Nicole’s fingers buried inside her and Nicole’s lips pressing soft loving kisses to her jaw and mouth._

_Her limbs are shaking as Nicole withdraws her hand and when she can finally open her eyes she’s faced with Nicole idly licking her fingers clean._

_It’s the hottest thing Waverly has ever seen._

_“You taste amazing.” Nicole purrs, a sly smirk spreading over her beautiful face, and then before can even think about opening her mouth to reply Nicole is moving again, kissing her way down Waverly’s chest, over her breasts, briefly sucking on nipple into her mouth before releasing it with an audible pop. Then her lips are moving again, sucking and kissing down the smooth plane of her stomach before she settles down between Waverly’s legs._

_Her subconscious has worked out what Nicole is doing even if her brain isn’t quite there yet, so it comes as somewhat of a surprise when Nicole’s tongue licks the entire length of her slit, lapping up the remnants of her orgasm. Waverly didn’t think she could be ready to go again so soon, but her body’s reaction immediately proves her wrong, arching further into Nicole’s touch as her tongue begins to dance over Waverly’s clit, drawing intricate patterns that she can’t even begin to predict, keeping her body on edge._

_She’s hurtling towards another orgasm, hands buried in Nicole’s hair, anchoring her between her legs, she can’t help but think that if she were to die right now, right this second, then she would die happy._

_When Nicole adds her fingers to the mix, easily sliding two fingers in and curling them as her tongue flicks over Waverly’s clit in just the right way Waverly feels herself come undone for the second time in the space of a few minutes, fireworks explode behind her eyes, mouth open as Nicole’s name falls from her mouth in a chant._

_There’s a thin sheen of sweat covering Waverly’s body and her limbs are still shaking a moment later when Nicole crawls up her body, having finally gotten rid of her own jeans and underwear, her naked body pressing against every inch of Waverly’s._

_“Oh my god.” Waverly breaths, pulling Nicole in for a deep kiss, moaning when she can taste herself on the other woman’s tongue. It’s a novel experience, and one she definitely wants to have again. “That was…wow!”_

_Nicole chuckles, the sound coming out near Waverly’s breast where she’s been planting soft kisses._

_Levering herself up onto her elbows Waverly casts a hungry gaze down Nicole’s body, taking in the curves and toned muscles, her mouth goes dry as she imagines doing to Nicole what she just did to her._

_“I want to try…that.” Her attempt at a sultry proposition is marred by the loud yawn that strikes in the middle. Nicole chuckles again and pulling Waverly against her chest she plants a kiss to the top of her head._

_“You’ll get your chance, but first take a nap. I think I wore you out a little.”_

_“Yeah, you did.” Waverly mutters sleepily against Nicole’s shoulder, arm snaking around her lover’s waist. “Just wait and I’ll repay the favour.” She promises even as she feels herself drifting off into a blissful sleep._

* * *

Waverly was jerked harshly from her vivid memories by Nicole’s hand on her shoulder shaking her as roughly as she dared.

“Waverly? Waverly! I need you to speak to me, please!”

Shaking her head Waverly looked up, right into Nicole’s brown eyes, wide and concerned as she bobbed down next to her. Waverly scrabbled to her feet, causing Nicole to fall backwards with a surprised squeak.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Waverly croaked as Nicole picked herself up.

“Waverly I tried, I really did.”

“You didn’t try hard enough, you had so much time!” now that she’s remembered everything the shock is starting to wear off a little and was rapidly being replaced by an anger that was filling up every part of her.

“Waverly, please I…”

“I need to get out of here.” Turning on her heel Waverly turned and walked away as fast as her still shaking legs could carry her.

The heavens had opened and within seconds of leaving the police station Waverly was soaked, she walked as if on autopilot not knowing where she was going, not caring where she was going. All she could think about was _that_ night.

Nicole was her one-night stand.

Her one-night stand was Nicole.

She had a feeling Nicole would come after her and it wasn’t look before she heard her name being called over the sound of the rain. She didn’t turn around, she couldn’t, because she knew if she looked back now she might stop, she might listen and right now she didn’t want to listen, she wanted to get away, she wanted to go home.

“Waverly, please!” planting herself in front of Waverly Nicole reached out a hand to stop her, Waverly cast her eyes down to her feet, not wanting to see the way the rain was running down Nicole’s skin. “You have to listen.”

“I don’t _have_ to do anything!” Waverly responded angrily. “You’ve been lying to me for months now. You’ve been my friend, and you decided you couldn’t tell me about one of the biggest things that has ever happened to me, something that you had no right to keep from me!” she finally looks up, Nicole is standing in front of her, hair plastered to her face and tears shining in her eyes. With her memories still fresh in her mind Waverly tried not to think about how good she looked in her work out clothes, instead she focused on the anger, using it to anchor herself and get the strength she needed to walk away.

“I need to go. Don’t follow me!”

She half expects Nicole to come after her as she marches away, trying to keep the tears that are threatening from spilling down her cheeks. But there were no footsteps, no voice calling her name and when she chanced a look over her shoulder she could see Nicole still standing where she left her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think? I know memories don't tend to all come back at once like that but I wanted a flashback scene showing what happened that night and that was the best way I could come up with doing it. So Waverly's not happy and Nicole has a lot of explaining to do, if Waverly will let her! I hope you enjoyed that and do leave me comments letting me know what you thought, kudos always appreciated and as always I'm on Tumblr. 
> 
> It's 2am here in the UK so I need to sleep! Apologies for any glaring typos! Until next time!


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all I am so sorry that it has taken almost three weeks to update. I've had the most insanely busy couple of weeks and haven't had all that much time to write, I hope this chapter makes up for the wait you've had to endure. 
> 
> Second of all, wow! The response to the last chapter was overwhelming! I was really worried about the tone of the last chapter and smut is always difficult but everyone's response was amazing! So thank you so much for all the kudos and comments, it made me so happy! I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Waverly Earp was a woman who could rarely accused of being bad tempered, anyone who knew her could attest to her positive nature and sunny disposition, very rare was it for a negative word to fall from her lips. Wynonna and Willa were always the hot-tempered ones in the family, the two most likely to fall into bad moods which often, in Wynonna’s case at least, fell to Waverly to pull them out of.

Waverly’s foul mood had lasted for three days now, starting the moment she had left Nicole standing in the rain, festering and bubbling all the way back to the homestead before she had locked herself in her room for the rest of the evening.

As soon as her bedroom door had slammed behind her Waverly allowed the emotions that had been barely contained to flow to the surface, slumping down on her bed, hands covering her face as hot tears leaked from her eyes.

Her emotions were all over the place, one minute she felt like lying down in her bed and crying until the pain went away, the next she felt like putting her fist through the nearest wall. Part of her wanted to march straight back out of the door, go back to find Nicole and demand answers, not leaving until she was satisfied, whilst another part of her wanted to never set eyes on the other woman again, not wanting hear what possible reason she could have had for hiding something this big from her.

The tears continued to fall thick and fast that night as Waverly was assaulted with the memories she had been striving to remember for the past few months. Every time she closed her eyes something new flashed behind her eyelids, each picture more vivid than the last. All the gaps were being filled, the pieces of the puzzle finally falling into place.

The reasons Nicole had seemed oddly familiar in all the time they had known each other was now glaringly obvious, things that Waverly had brushed aside now seemed so much more significant.

The smile the Nicole would give her, the one that warmed her heart and made her feel so special, but always came with an air of familiarity, now she knew why. It was because she had seen that smile being directed her way in the bar that night, as they had sat in the booth exchanging nervous glances. She had seen it when they’d parted between kisses, both breathless and gasping for more.

Those soft brown eyes that crinkled at the edges whenever Nicole flashed her a smile, that sparkled brightly when she looked at Waverly. They were the eyes that Waverly had dreamt about countless times in the past few months.

Kneading fiercely at her eyes Waverly let out a loud groan of frustration. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been this angry, the sting of the betrayal was like a thousand pin pricks made all the stronger by the fact that it was _Nicole_ that had hurt her.

Waverly had put her heart on the line when she had confessed the previous evening to Nicole how she felt. Never in her life had she ever been so bold, except her one-night stand, which, up until a few hours ago she had believed to be with a mystery woman. Over the last few months Waverly’s feelings had deepened quicker and she had fallen harder than she believed possible. She had assumed that it was her one-night stand that had opened her eyes to the possibility that she could fall for a woman. What she hadn’t realised was that she had been falling for Nicole for longer than that, since that night, when she had no idea who she was.

But Nicole had known exactly who she was.

Thinking of all the chances Nicole had had to tell her sent a fresh wave of pain followed immediately by a fresh wave of anger. She had trusted Nicole, thrust himself into the unknown for her, and she couldn’t help but feel that Nicole had duped her, used her prior knowledge of their night together to make Waverly fall for her.

Because there was no way Nicole could be as perfect as she had appeared these past months. Of course, she was too good to be true.

Waverly always liked to see the good in people, liked to believe that inside every person was at least some shred of decency. It was one of the reasons she had stayed with Champ for so long, despite some of his more dubious character traits she had always hoped that one day he would morph into the good man she knew he had the potential to be.

He never had.

There were of course exceptions that proved her rule, there was nothing anybody could say to convince her that Bobo had even the capacity to be a decent human being, much less the inclination. If Waverly really had to name one thing about Bobo that was even a little bit nice she supposed that she would have to concede that in his own way Bobo did seem to love Willa, although what her sister saw in him Waverly couldn’t say.

Waverly hadn’t been exaggerating when she’d told Nicole that she was pure the night of the storm at the homestead, she had meant it with every fibre of her being.  At the time, she had believed that there was nothing about Nicole that was false, that when she looked into Nicole’s eyes she would see nothing but the truth.

But it turned out Nicole had a secret.

A secret that by rights was Waverly’s too.

She knew she was going around in circles, brain focusing solely on the pain and irrationally not wanting to think that maybe, just maybe she should have let Nicole explain. But right now, she can’t deal with irrational, she needed to walk away, she needs to _feel_ this fully.

Another groan slipped out into the quiet of her room as her palms knead again at her eyes, already red and raw from crying tears of both anger and hurt. Waverly usually believed that a good cry could help nearly any bad situation, within reason of course, but it seemed that no matter how many tears fell from her eyes the dull aching in her chest that had been present since she had spotted Nicole’s tattoo hadn’t faded, if anything it had gotten worse. Pain that radiated through her body with every beat of her heart.

“Are you ok in there baby girl?” Wynonna’s concerned question accompanied her soft knock on the door. “You’ve been in there all evening.”

“I’m fine.” Waverly called back, trying to keep the thickness from crying had left in her voice. “Just got a bit of a headache, think I’m just going to try and sleep it off.”

“Ok, well I’m here if you need anything.” Waverly squeezed her eyes shut, fresh tears threatening as Wynonna’s soft footfalls retreated away from the door. A small voice inside her spoke up, begging her to call Wynonna back, tell her what happened, all of it, back to the night in the bar.  But she stayed quiet, the words rising in her throat but not making themselves heard. How would she even begin to explain what had happened over the past few months when she wasn’t even sure herself.

Turning onto her stomach Waverly buried her face into her pillow, praying for sleep.

* * *

"Seriously, what crawled up your ass and died?!” Waverly glared at Wynonna over the bar as she poured her sister another drink. “It’s no use giving me that glare, it just makes you look like you’re six years old again.” Wynonna continued as Waverly handed over her drink.

“I’m fine.” Even Waverly didn’t believe her lukewarm response.

“Bullshit!” Wynonna snorted. “You’ve been hell to be around the past few days! And that’s saying something, usually I’d love to have a bit of angsty Waverly, gives me a break from all the sunshine and rainbows, but this is unbearable!”

“It’s nothing, really!” Waverly turned away from Wynonna, she didn’t want to look her sister in the eyes, because she knew that Wynonna would see the lie in her eyes.

“If you say so Waves.”  Wynonna shot her a knowing smirk.

It was a Friday night and the bar was crowded, which Waverly was thankful for because it meant that she was busy, and busy meant she was spending less time in her own head, and right now the last place Waverly wanted to be was inside her own head.

She had gone over the brief conversation she had had with Nicole in her head more times than she could care to count, remembering with pristine clarity the exact second Nicole’s expression had changed when Waverly had said she knew. The surprise, the shock, and then immediately, the regret.

She’d had no contact with Nicole since she left her standing in the rain. Not that the redhead hadn’t tried, Waverly’s phone had barely stopped buzzing. Dozens of phone calls that had gone unanswered, double that in texts that had been deleted before being read. Of course, the temptation to open the texts and see what Nicole had to say was there, listen to the voicemails. Because a part of her wanted to hear Nicole’s voice, in the past few month’s it had become soothing to Waverly.

She hated that the one thing that had the potential to calm her foul mood was the last thing she wanted to hear.

Running a hand through her hair Waverly sighed, she was exhausted. Her body felt like it was going to drop at any moment, but her mind had other ideas, refusing to let her body rest. Every time she closed her eyes the images that assaulted her was enough to have them snapping back open. Passionate images of their night together, Nicole’s lips trailing down her body and the memory of the fire they had ignited.

For every memory of that night there was another of Nicole, standing in front of her, _not_ telling her what she knew. All the chances she’d had and not taken one of them.

Waverly sensed Nicole entering the bar before she saw her, she couldn’t explain how she knew, but even with her back to the door it was if something in the air had changed. Turning from her place by the coffee machine Waverly watched out of the corner of her eye as Nicole moved around the edge of the bar, shadowing two of her colleagues who were talking animatedly whilst Nicole looked as if she would rather be anywhere but there. This was the first Waverly had seen of Nicole since she had been to the Sheriff’s office.

She hated that the first thought she had was how beautiful Nicole looked.

She hated that the second thought she had was noticing the bags under the police officer’s eyes.

She hated that seeing how tired and defeated Nicole looked sparked a pang of sympathy in her heart and her first instinct was to rush to her side.

She forced herself to stay still. She would not give in.

Waverly tried not to notice the table where Nicole and the other deputies sat, tried not to notice that Nicole stayed sat at the table whilst her colleagues got their drinks.

“Another drink please Waverly.” Wynonna’s rare use of the word ‘please’ threw Waverly for a moment before she took her sister’s empty beer jug and moved swiftly to refill it, grateful to have something to do with her hands.

“Here you go.”

“Thank you.” Wynonna leant against the bar as she took the first swig of her drink. “Hey! There’s Haughtstuff!”

Waverly didn’t look up at Wynonna’s words, preferring to give a small grunt to let her know she had heard.

“What’s wrong with her?” Waverly turned at Wynonna’s next question, seeing her sister staring across the bar at Nicole’s table, a frown creasing her brow.

“What do you mean?”

“Well I mean she looks like someone’s kicked her puppy, which is really weird because she also looks like a puppy with those big brown eyes, so it’s like looking at a puppy that’s looking like someone’s kicked their puppy.” She crinkled her nose in confusion. “So what’s wrong with her?”

“How should I know?” Waverly shrugged, eyes staying resolutely on the glass she was cleaning (a recurring habit it seemed), so she wouldn’t have to look up and see the look Wynonna was referring to. She knew that if she saw Nicole’s eyes, wide and pleading, her resolve would crack and right now she needed to keep it whole, she needed time.

“I don’t know, because you two are like _friends_.” Wynonna shot her a look that clearly meant ‘duh!’. “Isn’t that what friends do? You know, talk about their problems and stuff.”

“I’ve not seen her for a while, I’ve been busy.” Waverly mumbled. “So I don’t know what’s wrong.” It was half true and part of Waverly felt bad for lying _again_ to her sister.

“Huh, it’s a bit weird that both you and her are in bad moods at the same time.” Wynonna mused. Waverly looked up sharply, watching her sister’s expression closely for a sign that she was putting the pieces together. Or some version of them at least.

“You two have both synched up!” Wynonna burst out triumphantly moment later, clicking her fingers at the same time. “That’s why you’re both in weird moods, it’s _that_ time of the month.”

“Ewww Wynonna no!” Waverly rolled her eyes. “I’ve told you there’s nothing wrong with me.”

“Tell that to your face.” Wynonna grunted, moving away before Waverly had time to formulate a retort.

Waverly could feel someone watching her as she got on with her work, eye focused on the bar, forcing herself to do any mundane task that required her eyes to be fixated downwards, Waverly finally gave into temptation and chanced a glance upwards.

Only to be met with the full force of Nicole’s gaze across the bar.

The breath she had been taking in caught into her throat and for a moment Waverly is frozen in place, having forgotten quite how intense Nicole’s stare was, it was as if she was looking through every defence Waverly had thrown up, every barricade and was now seeing the raw heart of her. The thought caused Waverly to take a deep shuddering breath.

The regret from Nicole’s eyes that had been haunting her dreams the past three days since she left Nicole standing alone in the rain was still present, made all the starker by the dark rings that encircle her eyes. Nicole clearly hadn’t been sleeping much.

The small sadistic part of her, (that she had nicknamed Willa long ago), was happy at this prospect.

The larger, (thankfully), caring part of her felt an immediate surge of guilt that the toll Nicole’s own guilt was so obviously taking on her. Of course, this guilt was not enough to let Waverly give an inch, the wounds of Nicole’s betrayal were too raw, too open.

She met Nicole’s stare with one of her own, determined not to give an inch, not give any indication to the myriad of emotions that tormented her. This was easier said than done, Waverly had always been an emotionally expressive person, what she thought written all over her face, no matter the emotion. It was one of the reasons it had been so easy for Bobo and Willa to pick on her when she was younger, it immediately showed on her face when something they said or did hit home.

Working hard to keep her face stoic Waverly kept her eyes trained on Nicole for a full two minutes before Nicole broke away, eye dropping back down to stare into the bottom of her beer. Waverly lowered her own gaze, quite relieved Nicole had looked away first. It was hard keeping her nerve and resolve when confronted by Nicole’s piercing brown eyes.

Shaking her head, as if agitated by a fly Waverly turned her back on Nicole’s table, allowing anger at herself for nearly wavering and Nicole for being so intense to flair in her stomach, latching onto the uncharacteristic emotion as a way of grounding her in a, quite frankly, unprecedented situation.

* * *

If there was one thing Nicole Haught knew with almost absolute certainty she _wasn’t_ , it was a coward. Her entire life she had been told time and again that she was brave, her teacher had said it when she stood up to the bullies three years older than her when she was in the second grade, despite it earning her a busted lip. Her mother had told her in hushed proud tones when Nicole had admitted she liked girls when she was seventeen. Her friends had told her when she’d made it clear she wasn’t going to hide her newly realised sexuality from the other students in their school. Some muttered it with a sense of awe, whilst others scoffed it, disbelieving of her resolve to go through with it.

She soon proved them wrong.

When she announced her intention to attend the police academy and follow in the footsteps of four previous generations, (all male), of her family Nicole had been inundated with people, all eager to tell her what a brave decision she was making.

_‘Especially for a woman’_

One of the qualities that made Nicole such a good police officer, and a good person, was her ability to face up to things. Things she had done wrong, things other people had done wrong, she was rarely seen to shy away from a difficult conversation, or a fight for that matter. She was strong willed, without being pig headed, able to be calm and calculated when the situation called for it, but intimidating and powerful when needed. She didn’t shy away from tough choices and it was one of the reasons she had come top of her class.

No, Nicole Haught was not a coward.

_Except_ , when it came to Waverly Earp.

Nicole had tried, many times, to tell Waverly the truth about what had happened that night in the bar. She had wanted to say the words more than anything else in the world, many nights she had lain in bed, planning meticulously what she would say, how she would explain. But whenever an opportunity arouse there was always _something_ that prevented her, whether it be an interruption out of her hands, usually Wynonna. Or, to her everlasting shame, her own cowardice, the words she so desperately wanted to stay sticking in her throat like tar, impossible to move.

She knew with every day that passed and she said nothing was only making her situation worse, even more so because of the deepening bond between her and the youngest Earp.

It was because of this bond that Nicole had found it harder and harder to come clean.

She knew she liked Waverly from the moment she had bumped into her at the bar, the connection had been instantaneous, electric, and Nicole could barely believe her luck when Waverly had instigated their kiss, pulling her in connecting their lips in a kiss so passionate it had left Nicole’s head spinning. Ordinarily Nicole would have taken the younger woman on a date before even thinking about taking her to bed, but Waverly’s insistence and the buzz from the alcohol had Nicole pushing down the little voice in her head that told her to be rational, that Waverly was most likely only doing this because she had broken up with her boyfriend, she was straight and just looking for something different, using Nicole as her experiment. Nicole didn’t like thinking negative thoughts about people, especially not ones as sweet as Waverly, but she had been burned before.

In a moment of uncharacteristic recklessness Nicole had thrown away her self-preservation and allowed Waverly to sweep her up in her whirlwind, turning what had been a night without agenda into one of the best nights of her life.

It had hurt more because of this when she woke up to an empty bed.

Nicole had told herself that maybe, just maybe, she would never see the petite woman who had turned her world upside down in all the best ways, that it was one of those strange things in life that she would look back on in the years to come as a one off, a fond memory but a memory none the less. It was for the best her rational side had reasoned.

Somehow, deep down, Nicole knew that wasn’t going to happen.

She hadn’t been lying when she’d told Waverly that she was a popular girl around the town. Less than an hour into her first day as Purgatory’s newest deputy Nicole had already heard Waverly’s name, spoken with a very fond reverence by the woman who delivered the mail to the station.

Wynonna’s name was almost mentioned, albeit with much _less_ affection.

By the time her first shift had ended Nicole had heard from no fewer than ten different people about how kind Waverly was, how sweet she was. A credit to the town.

A credit to the town that Nicole had had a one-night stand with. Not that she mentioned that.

It took a while for Nicole to pluck up the courage to go to Shorty’s, three weeks in fact. Before that she had outright avoided the place, it made socialising difficult as Shorty’s was pretty much the only place in Purgatory to get a drink that wasn’t the grocery store. Nicole’s first weeks in her new town had been spent drinking beer at home with only her cat for company.

It wasn’t that Nicole didn’t _want_ to see Waverly again. She did. It was just that after waking up in an empty bed and seeing Waverly sprint away from her building as if the she was being chased by demons from hell hadn’t instilled Nicole with the feeling that Waverly had enjoyed their night together as much as she thought she had.  It had caused a tight knot in the pit of her stomach at the idea that Waverly might have only gone home with her that night because she was drunk, because she wanted to experiment. All her old insecurities came rushing back, insecurities that had been sown during her college days and followed her to this day.

The small part of her brain that had tried to reason that she was nothing more than an experiment was feeling quite smug.

For almost three weeks Nicole had battled with her thoughts about that night, scared of what might happen if she came face to face with Waverly. The fact that no one had screamed at her in the street for defiling Purgatory’s favourite bartender meant that at least Waverly wasn’t angrily telling people about it.

She supposed that was a relief.

Finally, after one too many nights sat alone in her flat scrolling through Netflix for what felt like the millionth-time Nicole had decided that enough was enough. She was _not_ a coward, and was most certainly not going to spend the rest of her time in this town (which could be a long time) hiding away in her flat. She could face Waverly, they were both adults, if the other girl regretted sleeping with her then Nicole would just have to deal with it. But there would be no harm in seeing the girl again in the cold light of day and dialling up her charm a little.

Her opportunity to see Waverly had come sooner than she had expected. The very next day in fact.

When Nedley had announced at the beginning of her early morning shift that he needed someone to investigate a break in at Shorty’s, called in by one Waverly Earp. Nicole had jumped on the assignment with such fervour that Nedley had looked quite shocked. It was unusual for his officers to get excited about anything, especially at that time of the morning. He had shrugged it off with a grunt, retreating into his office for a nap, leaving Nicole to make her way over to Shorty’s, her heart hammering in her chest the whole way.

If Nicole had thought waking up to an empty bed had been hard, she was in for a shock. She had come to terms with the fact that Waverly hadn’t sought her out spoken to her because she hadn’t enjoyed the experience as much as she had let on, not every girl who experimented liked it, it hurt but it was a fact. A fact Nicole had come to accept.

However, realising that Waverly had no recollection of who Nicole was or their night together and, apparently, wanted to forget it have ever happened was _much_ harder.

It had hurt, like a physical blow and it had taken every fibre of her being to not run away and hide, but instead stay and finish her investigations. Because damn it all if she wasn’t a good cop and would not let personal issues stop her from doing her job.

She should have told her then and there, just said the words, ripped it off like a band aid. It would have been messy, it would have been humiliating, but it would have been the right thing to do. Waverly had deserved that.

But she’d stayed quiet. Her self-preservation kicking in, manifesting in a low dark voice, a darker side of her that had evolved to make the harder decisions, the selfish decisions. The ones that would protect her heart. It informed her in a rarely heard dark voice that if Waverly wanted to forget about their night together then who was she to contradict that. She should move on, not mention it because Waverly clearly had no desires on Nicole in that way.

It became harder and harder to believe that as the weeks went on.

It had been the low dark voice that had caught the words in her throat in the following weeks whenever she tried to allow them to escape, whenever she opened her mouth to tell Waverly the truth. It had whispered at her in the dark when she lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling, thinking incessantly about the smaller woman who had captivated her, whose smile could light up a room, whose eyes sparkled with unbounded curiosity and mischief.

_You like her_ the voice would crow gleefully.

Nicole had fallen hard and she knew it, Waverly was so unlike anyone she had ever met and she was drawn to her like a moth to a flame, the threat of the fire a constant but she didn’t seem to care, as long as Waverly continued to smile at her in that way then she could ignore the fire that could so consume her.

It had taken a lot to push the voice down, taken a lot to march to Shorty’s that night, ready to tell Waverly everything.

Her resolve had wavered somewhat as she’d stood in front of Waverly and when the other girl had admitted that she knew why Nicole was there had almost stopped her heart. Had Waverly figured it out?

Waverly revealing that she liked Nicole had been just about the last thing Nicole had expected her to say.

Of course, she had noticed the bond between them deepening, there had been the lingering glances, the shy smiled, the tension that seemed to invade most of their conversations, and of course, the almost kiss at the homestead. But Nicole had never dared believe that her growing affections for Waverly were _actually_ reciprocated. She had assumed it was her rose tinted glasses, projecting what she hoped to see on what she was actually seeing.

That and Waverly running away didn’t exactly scream ‘I like it’.

Then Waverly had been so close, face millimetres away from her own, telling Nicole that she wanted to kiss her, the words she had wanted to hear so badly, and her brain had felt foggy and uncoordinated, a very unusual feeling for her. But she knew she had to do it now, she had to say the words, even if it meant those lips, the lips she had been dreaming about kissing for months, moved away.

But _again,_ the opportunity had been lost.

Then, yesterday afternoon and the moment that Nicole had been dreading. The moment Waverly figured it out. The moment her life had come crumbling in around her and her deepest regrets were laid bare.

Which was now how Nicole found herself in her current predicament, three days after her confrontation with Waverly, the image of her wide eyes and angry tears haunting every single one of her waking moments.

With a loud sigh Nicole let her head fall forward, forehead colliding painfully with the steering wheel of her patrol car. She had been sat at the juncture of the main road where it turned off to the Earp homestead for more than an hour now, ever since her shift had finished. Her internal debate had been fiercely raging the entire time, two sides doing bloody battle.

One side, her dark self-preservation, demanded what to know what she was doing there, reasoning that Waverly didn’t _want_ to see her there was no reason for her to be _here_. She should turn around and head home, move on. Before it was too late.

_You owe her an explanation._

The other side of her, the side that often prompted her to make her braver decisions, was always more moral and was always pushing her to do what she knew was the right thing.

Without hope or agenda.

Nicole didn’t expect Waverly to ever forgive her, but there was a small part of her that hoped that if she explained, that _maybe_ Waverly would be able to find it in her heart to forgive her.

She had run for too long.

Nicole was _not_ a coward. It was with that thought that she turned the key in the ignition, starting the car and pulling it out onto the dirt track towards the homestead.

* * *

Nicole didn’t know if she was relieved or filled with dread at seeing Waverly’s jeep parked in the yard of the homestead. She knew that Willa and Wynonna were out, she had seen them heading into Shorty’s as she’d driven through town.

Her pace was slow and measured as she made her way to the front door, fear settling low in her stomach.

What if Waverly refused to even open the door?

Sweat coated her forehead and palms of her hands and she took a deep shuddering breath as she raised a hesitant hand to knock on the door.

The sound of her hand hitting the wood seemed to echo through the house and Nicole strained to hear as she waited for what seemed an eternity, but was in reality only a few seconds before the sound of the lock being unlatched reached her ears.

The door opened a crack and Waverly’s face appeared in the gap.

Her usually sparkling eyes were clouded with suspicion as she looked Nicole up and down. The expression on her face sent a jolt of pain through Nicole’s chest, straight to her heart.

Waverly was looking at her like she was a stranger.

“What?” Waverly’s voice was clipped and short. So utterly unlike Nicole had heard before.

“I…was…hoping we could talk.” Nicole wrung her hands together nervously as she spoke, forcing the words out.

For a long moment Waverly was silent, a series of emotions flashing in her eyes. Nicole prided herself on being able to read Waverly quite well, but right now, she had no idea how this was going to go.

Finally, a look of resignation entered Waverly’s eyes, as if she had been expecting this and had no choice but to accept.

“Fine.”

The single word did not help bolster Nicole’s confidence as she sidled, somewhat ungracefully, past Waverly and into the homestead. Moving to the centre of the living room Nicole tried to keep her eyes away from the sofa, not wanting to be distracted by the memories of what had almost happened the last time she was here.

She could sense Waverly standing behind her, could sense the animosity that rolled off the smaller woman. Turning slowly, Nicole met Waverly’s steely gaze, her hands clenching by her sides whilst she tried to figure out what she should say.

“I’m sorry.” The first words that occurred to her were the most obvious and didn’t even begin to do justice to what she wanted to say. Nicole winced at how clunky the words sounded as they left her mouth and if the slight raising of Waverly’s left eyebrow was anything to go by she had a similar thought.

“Sorry?” Waverly repeated. You’ve had three days and all you can come up with is sorry?!”

Nicole winced again at the deserved retort. “You’re right. I have so much to say, so many things you deserve to hear.”

“You could start with why you decided to hide the fact that we slept together from me?!”

“It was never my intention to hide it for so long.” Nicole started after a moment’s pause. Waverly looked like she might interject so Nicole ploughed on, desperate to say what she had to. “I know that means nothing now, but I tried so many times to tell you, I could just never…get the words out.”

 “You know, it would have been _really_ easy just to say. ‘Hey Waverly, that person you can’t remember sleeping with? That was me!’” Waverly uncrossed her arms, waggling her fingers sarcastically, complete with a fake smile that quickly morphed back into a mask of annoyance.

“It was definitely not that easy!” Nicole bit back before she could stop herself. “The first time we ‘met’ you claimed that you wanted to forget that the night had ever happened. That you were embarrassed!”

“So you just decided to never tell me, even though we saw each other all the time, even though we became friends!” Waverly’s voice had raised and her face was getting a little flushed, a sure sign she was becoming angry.

“And it was killing me every day that I couldn’t say anything, but I didn’t think you wanted to know!”

“Why would I not want to know about something that huge?!” Waverly’s hands were gesturing in the air again.

“Because I thought you regretted it!” Nicole’s voice had risen above Waverly’s, echoing round the room.

“What?” Waverly looked bewildered.

“What am I supposed to think Waverly?” Nicole had planned on staying calm and explaining things rationally, not getting emotional and definitely not losing her temper.

Things had escalated quickly; she had barely been here five minutes.

“I wake up after one of the best nights of my life, expecting to you see next to me, and instead, I find an empty bed and you running away from my building like I was the devil or something! Then when I do see you, you don’t even remember us being together. So now what am I supposed to do!? Am I supposed to just waltz up to you and be like ‘hey, I’m the girl you ran away from! Fancy seeing you here!” she’s breathing heavily and knows in the back of her mind that losing her temper in this way is wrong, but Waverly wasn’t the only one with pent up emotion, desperate to be released.

Something that looked like guilt flashed in Waverly’s eyes, before being replaced with a defensive stare. “So what, you just decided that we could go through seeing each other all the time and not think to mention it, even when I…” now it was Waverly who faltered, tears collecting in her eyes. “Even when I was…” trailing off again she looked away, fighting with her emotions.

“You were what?” Nicole pressed.

This was the wrong move, Waverly’s eyes snapped back to her, lips a thin line. “It doesn’t matter. You betrayed me, you lied to me.”

“You ran away from me.” Nicole bit back, the dark voice in her taking over for a moment. “Doesn’t that make you partly accountable?”

Waverly looked like she was biting the inside of her own cheek, as if she couldn’t quite work out what to say. Nicole took a step forward, breaching part of the gap between them.

“I…I…” Waverly seemed speechless and for a moment Nicole wondered if she had done. Her uplifting feeling was short lived as Waverly shook her head vehemently. “Right now we’re not talking about me, we’re talking about you, and what you _should_ have done!”

“Ugh!” Nicole rubbed her face, taking another involuntary step. “I am sorry I didn’t tell you ok!”

“No! It’s not ok!” Waverly shouted back. “Do you have any idea what the last few months have been like for me?! I woke up in your bed, yes I ran away but I was scared since then I’ve had so much going through my head, so many questions, so many worries, so many fears.” She paused a ran a hand through her long hair, Nicole tried not to watch the motion, tried not to notice how beautiful she was. “Questions and fears that _you_ could have helped me with!”

The next words jar Nicole back away from her silent study of Waverly, she understands, of course she does. There was nothing worse in the world that feeling along and scared because everything you had ever believed about yourself was in doubt, she had done it in her teenage years and would never wish it upon anyone.

But at the same time Waverly’s words cause a twinge of annoyance. “I could have helped you with them.” Her voice was quiet, but with a hard edge to it that she wasn’t used to using.

“What?”

“If you’d stayed, I could have helped you.” Her voice was louder now. “But you chose to leave! That wasn’t my fault.”

“Maybe not, but as soon as you realised I couldn’t remember you should have said something!” Waverly snarled, taking another step closer. She was now less than a few feet away from Waverly.

“And I wish I had, but I thought you would reject me. I was hurt!” Nicole growled.

For a moment, they just glared at each other, anger reaching a boiling point but the air crackling with something else, something that was familiar to both of them, but neither wanted to acknowledge it. Neither knew what to do, the choice balancing on the edge of a knife.

The crackling of Nicole’s radio on her shoulder prevented either of them from tipping over the edge.

_“All available units on and off duty please respond we have a situation out on the Brady farm, armed suspects. I repeat all units on and off duty please respond. Brady farm.”_

Nicole sucked in a breath through her nose, trying to dispel some of her anger. “Copy that.” She muttered through clenched teeth into her radio.

Waverly was looking at her with a strange look in her face. “Nicole…”

“I have to go.” Brushing past Waverly she headed for the door, not trusting herself to look back.

“Nicole…wait…” Waverly’s quiet plea fell on deaf ears as Nicole strode out of the door and towards her car.

* * *

Nicole was distracted as she knew it, she knew she shouldn’t be going to this call.

She drove fast, knuckles clenching the steering wheel tightly, her brain was working at a million miles an hour, running over and over in her head the previous fifteen minutes.

“Haught!” Paul called out a greeting as her car screeched to a halt. Flinging the door open she stepped up next to him, hand slipping her pistol out of its holster.

“What have we got?”

“Gangs.” Paul replied sombrely. “Someone called in hearing shots fired, seems they’re not too happy with the owner of the farm, something about him owing them some money.”

“That’s just great.” Nicole muttered, moving with Paul to where the other deputies were gathered.

“So what’s the plan?” she asked Nedley as she approached.

The Sherriff looked serious, eyebrows knitted in a frown as he ran one hand up and down his shotgun.

“We try and draw ‘em out.” He replied gruffly. “We know you’re in there!” the next words were shouted at the barn. “Come out before this gets any worse!”

“Suck my dick!” a faint voice called back that Nicole barely recognised as Carl’s.

“Charming.” Paul grumbled.

“We have you surrounded.” Nedley gestured to Nicole with a jerk of his head, sending her to the left to flank the barn.

Sliding easily into place, gun trained on the side of the barn Nicole listened as Carl and his other friends shouted profanities at the deputies. It looked like they were in with the long haul.

Nicole tried to keep her mind focused on the barn, tried to keep her mind clear like she had been trained to do, but it was no good, all she could see was Waverly’s face, angry, upset. All because of her.

It was at that moment that two things happened at once.

First was the loud shot that rang out from the barn, ringing in her ears.

Second, was the searing pain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about yet another cliffhanger! And about the rather scrappy nature of Waverly and Nicole's fight, I wanted it to be irrational and emotional with both of them having their judgement a little clouded. 
> 
> Please do let me know what you thought of the chapter, kudos and comments always appreciated. I'm going to start answering to your comments because I've been very bad not too so far! So apologies for that! As always you can come and chat to me on tumblr. Until next time!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can only apologise for the wait between these chapters. I spent most of the last couple of weeks ill and didn't feel much like writing. The events of this week too have left me drained even as a Brit I cannot believe what I have been seeing! And I thought Brexit was bad! It's times like these I'm glad I do have writing to distract me from the horror that is happening in real life. 
> 
> I wanted to get this done before I go away for the weekend because I didn't want to make you guys wait for another chapter, especially on the cliffhanger I left it on. 
> 
> Thank you so much for the response to the last chapter, it was honestly astounding and you are all amazing so thank you so much!!
> 
> I apologise if this chapter is badly formatted it was written mostly on my phone and uploaded from there and I don't have access to a computer.

The news spreads around town like wildfire.

  
A police officer being shot was huge, especially in a small town like Purgatory.

  
Despite it being all anyone could talk about; Waverly didn’t hear about it until almost lunchtime. Her mind had been preoccupied with the fight with Nicole the night before to listen to what was going on around her.

  
“It was a proper shoot out I heard.” One man spoke loudly as Waverly brought him and his friend fresh drinks. “That police deputy weren’t the only one to take a bullet, one of the Brady’s cows got one too!”

  
Waverly froze at his words, hand still clutching his beer.

  
“Who got shot?” her voice was barely a croak and she prayed that she was wrong, that the dread settling low in her stomach was wrong.

  
“Waverly girl, what’s wrong with you?” the man grunted as he tried to pry his beer from her vice like grip.

  
“Who got shot?” she repeated.

  
“That new deputy, Nicole Hot or whatever her name is.” The man gave a surprised huff as his beer was relinquished to him, the contents almost slopping down his front.   
Waverly was already moving, back behind the bar she paused only to grab her bag and keys. “I need to go.” She told Gus who was watching her. With barely any hesitation Gus nodded.

  
“Go, I’ll handle things here.”

  
Jumping into her jeep Waverly revved the engine, speeding off towards the hospital. In her mind’s eye, all she could see was Nicole lying in a hospital bed, hooked up to machines, face deathly pale, the image causing a choked sob to rise in her throat.

  
What if it was bad?

  
What if Nicole died?

  
Their last words would have been harsh ones, spoken with hurt and anger.

  
Waverly would never forgive herself if that happened.

  
The usually short journey seemed to take forever and to Waverly it felt like a lifetime had passed before she was pulling into the hospital’s parking lot. Parking in the first space she could find Waverly all but fell out of her jeep, barely remembering to lock it as she dashed to the entrance.

  
The receptionist manning the front desk looked up in surprise as Waverly skidded to a halt in front of her.

  
“Nicole Haught, she was brought in yesterday, can you tell me what ward she’s on?!” Waverly didn’t even give the woman, Sally, the wife of one of the Shorty’s regulars, a chance to greet her.

  
“Nicole Haught? The police deputy?” Waverly nodded. “Let me check for you.” If she was confused by Waverly’s intense expression and panicked eyes for someone who wasn’t family the receptionist made no mention of it, focusing instead on her computer.

  
“She was brought in yesterday. Gunshot wound.” Sally muttered as her eyes scanned the record. “Admitted to the Emergency department and then…” she frowned slightly. “…oh, discharged?”

  
“Discharged?”

  
“Yes, self-discharged according to this.” Sally looked up, flagging down a passing nurse. “Polly, you were looking after Officer Haught, why was she discharged?”

  
“She insisted.” The nurse replied. “Was very adamant that she was fine and didn’t need, or want, to be here.”

  
“Was she hurt badly?” Waverly demanded.

  
“Not seriously, it was still a pretty nasty wound though.”

  
“So she went home?” the nurse looked a little taken aback by Waverly’s rapid questioning, but answered the question regardless.

  
“No, I believe she was going back to work. Not what I would have advised, but still.”

  
That was all Waverly needed to hear, turning she headed for the door, remembering her manners at the last moment she spun back around. “Thank you very much.”

  
“You’re welcome.” Sally called back as Waverly disappeared through the automatic doors before sharing a bemused look with the nurse.

  
Earp’s.

  
Waverly’s drive back to the centre of town was less frenzied now she was sure Nicole was not knocking on death’s door. Her hands still gripped the wheel a little too tightly and her heart thudded louder in her chest, but the edge to her panic had dulled somewhat. Right now, she only had one thought in her head.   
She had to see Nicole.

* * *

Fortunately for Nicole, Carl was a lousy shot. His bullet had grazed her ribs, slicing through her shirt and skin like butter, leaving a gash a couple of inches long. Had the bullet been an inch to the left then she would have been in real trouble, but luckily her wound was a superficial one. 

That hadn’t stopped it feeling like someone had pressed a red-hot poker to her side.

  
The ride to the hospital in the back of Nedley’s squad car had passed in a bit of a haze for Nicole, her mind preoccupied with the sheer amount of blood that was staining her shirt.

  
And the image of Waverly Earp’s face.

  
Had she not been in so much pain she might have laughed at the slightly pathetic way her mind went straight to the youngest Earp as soon as she was in trouble, at how after her blood loss the most pressing thought on her mind was what if she never got to see Waverly again?

  
Being covered in blood had made her a little dramatic.

  
Once at the hospital Nedley had ushered her inside, bellowing at anyone who got in their way. The staff seemed a little dumbfounded as Nedley advanced towards them, one arm supporting Nicole, the other pointing rapidly from person to person, demanding that someone treat his officer immediately. She had tried to tell him that it wasn’t serious but he hadn’t listened.

  
He had insisted on staying with her during the consultation, even when Nicole assured him she would be fine alone. It wasn’t until the nurse started unbuttoning Nicole’s shirt in the small cubicle that Nedley came to his senses and bustled out, eyes training on the floor and muttering about swinging by and feeding her cat. Nicole couldn’t help but laugh at the Sherriff’s obvious embarrassment.

  
Nicole had always hated hospitals, there was something about the white walls, too bright and too clean, the hallways that seemed to echo every sound that filled her with a sense of uneasiness. She’d watched her grandmother waste away in a hospital, and had spent quite a bit of time in them when she was in the Academy being patched up for various injuries sustained from trying to prove herself the best in her class.

  
The doctor’s advice had been that Nicole should be kept in for at least a couple of days, to ensure that no infection set in and that she shouldn’t be back at work for at least a few days after that.

  
That was not going to work for Nicole.

  
She gave them one night before discharging herself the following morning, despite the nurse’s best efforts to keep her in bed. But Nicole could be incredibly stubborn when she wanted to be and eventually the nurses gave up, discharging her with strict instructions to go straight home and have bed rest.

  
Nicole had told them she would be going back to work as she left.

  
After a quick pit stop at home to shower and change into fresh clothes Nicole headed for work.

  
Nedley had almost had a heart attack when she walked into the station. His eyes had bulged so far out of his head that Nicole was worried she was going to have to rush him to the hospital. Between spluttered breaths he had demanded to know what she was doing back in work and not in bed. Nicole’s response that she would have been bored had his face turning an alarming shade of red. For a moment, she had wondered if he was actually going to physically drag her out of the station and back home, but after a moment and with a heavy sigh the Sherriff had deflated. Grabbing his jacket, he’d stomped out of the office, dragging Paul with him, but not before telling Nicole sternly that he didn’t expect to see her out from behind a desk for at least a week.

  
That had been two hours ago and was how Nicole had come to find herself sat at the desk, paperwork mounted around her, trying to stave off the inevitable boredom that came with the mundane task. She wanted to be out on patrol, but knew better than to go against Nedley’s instructions. She had pushed her luck enough for one day.

  
The office was mostly quiet and the silence allowed Nicole’s mind to wander, back to before the shooting and the argument that had led her to be distracted on the job.   
The look in Waverly’s eyes as they had bandied words back and forth was what stuck most in Nicole’s mind, the mixture of betrayal, hurt, anger and buried deep down, so deep that Nicole wasn’t even sure she had seen it; longing. all of them fighting with each other to be seen, or not seen in the latter’s case.

  
She had gone to the homestead with the intention of fixing things but it appeared that she had only made them worse. Much worse. Nicole definitely hadn’t gone there to lose her temper and shout at Waverly, but her frustration had bubbled up and out before she could stop it. There was something about Waverly that seemed to heighten every single one of Nicole’s emotions, making each of them more powerful than she had ever felt more. It had been quite overwhelming, and Nicole’s usually careful control of her emotions had cracked and crumbled leaving her open and reactive.

  
Nicole knew that what she had done had been wrong, it had been a breach of trust and Waverly had every right to be angry at her and hurt. But there was a small part of that wanted the other woman to own up to her own part in the situation. If Waverly had stayed that morning, if she hadn’t have run they could have figured it out together. Nicole would have done her best to calm the fears that Waverly clearly had about that night.

  
Nicole didn’t know if there was a way to salvage any part of their relationship after this, as friends or anything else. But what she did know was that she wasn’t going to give up trying to prove to Waverly that she was sorry, that she should be forgiven. Her brush with death yesterday had shaken her to her core, serving as a powerful reminder that time is not something that she should take for granted, not something she should assume that she had lots of. She needed to make every day count and she didn’t want to let the chance of something happening with Waverly to slip past her because she was too scared.

  
If Waverly decided that she wanted nothing more to do with Nicole and the obstacles between them were insurmountable then she would, of course, accept that decision but it would be easier to accept in the knowledge that she had done everything she could to make it right.

  
It was as Nicole was deep in thought with her new resolve that the sound of boots treading heavily on the floor caught her attention.

  
Looking up the police officer was surprised to see the object of her thoughts barrelling through the door.

  
Waverly’s eyes darted frantically around the room, she was slightly out of breath and looked close to hysterics. When her eyes finally landed on Nicole they widened and a heavy breath left her body, as if she had been holding it tightly in her chest. Nicole barely had time to open her mouth, a concerned question poised on the end of her tongue as Waverly crossed the room. The question died in her throat as the smaller woman grabbed her by the wrist and dragged her none to gently away from her desk and through Nedley’s open office door.   
Nicole huffed as Waverly released her wrist, slamming the door shut behind her.

  
“What the...” Nicole never got the chance to finish her indignant demand, as soon as the door crashed into its housing Waverly had launched herself forward, lips crashing hard into Nicole’s and taking the taller woman completely by surprise. Waverly’s hands landed on either side of Nicole’s neck, fingers digging in and holding her close and she kissed her with a passion that caused the pit of Nicole’s stomach to drop away.

  
Nicole’s own hands scrabbled to Waverly’s hips to the keep them upright as Waverly had practically jumped into her arms. The momentum of her movements drove them both backwards, Nicole’s feet stumbling a little. Waverly’s lips were moving insistently over hers, fingers still pressed against the side of her face holding her in place as if she was going to disappear at any second. For an agonisingly long second Nicole was so surprised that she couldn’t kiss back, but then whilst her brain struggled to catch up with what was happening and her body kept its backward movement her lips sprang into action, moving against Waverly’s in an immediately familiar way. A way that Nicole hadn’t even realised how much she’d missed until now.

  
The kiss was hurried, frenzied and sizzling with the tension that had been brewing between them now for months, Waverly was pressed as close as she could get against Nicole’s chest, completely in charge, all Nicole could do was hang on blindly, losing herself to the moment.

  
When her knees hit the edges of the sofa that stretched across the back wall of Nedley’s office Nicole gave a surprised squeak as she fell heavily back onto the material, the squeak turning into a soft grunt as Waverly’s body landed on top of her.

  
She could have sworn she felt Waverly smile into the kiss, and even though her lungs were starving for air Nicole didn’t dare part their lips, who knew how long this bizarre change of events was going to last? If this was the last time she got to kiss Waverly, then by god she was going to make the most of it.   
Unfortunately for Nicole, she needed air to breath.

  
And also, she’d landed right on her gunshot wound.

  
Wrenching her mouth away from Waverly’s she took a deep breath, the lightheaded feeling dissipating as air flooded into her lungs, along with a gasp as pain laced through her side.

  
“What the hell was that?!” she demanded on her next exhale, although it came out more as breathy whisper than a demand, hand clasping her side willing the pain to go away.

  
“You got shot?!” Waverly answered with a question of her own, leaning back on her haunches her eyes flitted down to where Nicole had a hand clamped to her side.

  
“Maybe a little.” Nicole spoke through gritted teeth, brain still struggling to process what was going on in between the pain and the still lightheaded effects of Waverly’s kiss.   
“It’s nothing really I was ju…what the hell are you doing?” she cut herself off with an indignant squawk as Waverly’s hands grasped her shirt and gave it a forceful tug, pulling it out of her pants and up her side.

  
“I want to see.” Waverly grunted, hands batting Nicole’s out of the way even as she tried to pull her shirt down.

  
_Never thought I’d be fighting with Waverly to keep my clothes on._

  
The thought should have made her smile but she was more preoccupied with what Waverly was doing. Despite her best efforts the smaller woman had very strong fingers and had pried Nicole’s fingers off her shirt and pulled the material up her ribcage, her eyes widening as she took in the gauze that stretched over the wound, and the red stain that was spreading across it.

  
Waverly gave a small gasp, and her right hand which had fallen onto Nicole’s knee curled, fingers digging into her leg. Nicole watched the smaller woman warily, waiting for her to speak.  
But words seemed to fail Waverly and when her gaze flitted back to Nicole’s face she could see almost see Waverly’s brain working, trying to find something to say.

  
Eventually it seemed that Waverly gave up on words and leaning forward again she pressed her lips urgently against Nicole’s. A slower, tender kiss but still brimming with an underlying urgency, Waverly was kissing her as if she’d never get the chance to do so again.

  
That thought sent a cold chill down Nicole’s spine, causing her to pull Waverly closer she was lying half on top of her. Wound be damned.

  
“Are you ok?” Waverly mumbled against her lips, the fingers of her left-hand tracing with feather light touches round the side of the gauze.

  
“I’m fine.” Nicole breathed, head spinning at the combination of Waverly’s lips and fingers on her.

  
Her eyes snapped open in surprise when Waverly suddenly pulled back, the worried look had disappeared from her eyes, and been replaced by a diluted version of the angry look that Nicole had seen in her eyes the day before at the homestead. It was if she had just realised where she was and what she had just done.

  
“I am still _so_ pissed at you!” Waverly growled pointing an accusatory finger at Nicole.

  
Nicole opened her mouth to respond, to demand an answer as to why Waverly had just barged in here and kissed her like that but the smaller woman was on the move again. Scrambling off the sofa she crossed the office, wrenching the door open she was gone before Nicole could even lever herself up off the sofa, leaving her staring in confusion at the spot where Waverly had just been.

  
_What the hell was that about?!_

* * *

It wasn’t until Waverly was halfway back to Shorty’s that her mind actually began to process what she had just done.

  
She had kissed Nicole.

  
It hadn’t been on her mind when she’d pulled up outside the police station ten minutes earlier, all she had wanted to do was see Nicole, confirm with her eyes that the other woman was ok.

  
On seeing her though, the rush of emotion that had bubbled up in Waverly’s stomach had been impossible to contain and she had acted on instinct, answering a demand made deep inside her that she wasn’t even consciously aware of until they were in the office and she was in Nicole’s arms.

  
The second her lips had made contact with Nicole’s, Waverly felt like something slotted into place, a void that filled inside her that up until that moment she hadn’t even realised had been empty. It was as if suddenly a weight had been lifted from her shoulders and she could breathe properly again.

  
Feeling Nicole’s skin under her fingers, feeling her lips moving against her own had pushed the panic and worry that had been swirling in the pit of her stomach ever since she had heard the news about the shooting. Nicole was here, she was real.

  
She had needed to see the wound for herself, needed to know that it wasn’t serious, that Nicole wasn’t going to drop dead in front of her.

  
Even covered in gauze, seeing the wound had sent an icy chill through her body. A bullet had done that, a bullet had sliced through Nicole’s skin like it was nothing, a bullet that if it had been a scant few centimetres to the left would have done its job.

  
Seeing the physical proof of how close Nicole had come to death had left Waverly speechless, able to react in the only way that her brain could supply.

  
The second kiss was supposed to convey the words that Waverly couldn’t find, and it seemed Nicole understood if the way she’d pulled Waverly on top of her had been anything to go by. The steady beating of her heart under Waverly’s hand enough to finally push away the final vestiges of panic that gripped her own heart.

  
She never wanted to let go.

  
It was this realisation that had caused her to pull back. The memories of the fight and days before it flooding back now that her panic had subsided.

  
In that moment, she knew she had to leave, because if she didn’t she would kiss Nicole again and probably not stop. And right now, she wasn’t ready to face what that might mean, there was so much uncertainty between them, so many unsaid words, unheard explanations. The planner in her, the rational methodical side urged her to feet and to the door, telling her that there was still too much she didn’t know, that Nicole had hurt her.

  
It still hadn’t been easy to leave.

  
Waverly didn’t realise she’d driven home until she was pulling to a stop outside the homestead. Her mind had been so consumed with going over the events of the past half an hour that she’d bypassed town completely and gone home.

  
For a moment, she considered heading back to Shorty’s to see if Gus needed help, but the idea left her mind pretty quickly. She needed to be alone.

  
Unfortunately, alone was not a luxury she had.

  
“You’re home early.” Waverly stopped at the sound of Willa’s voice, cursing internally as she turned to face her sister who was sat at the kitchen table, a large book open in front of her.

  
“Bar wasn’t busy, decided to come home early.”

  
“It’s nice for some to be able to clock off early.”

  
Waverly gritted her teeth at the judgemental tone in Willa’s voice. “You’ve taken how long off work to be here?” she couldn’t help the slightly snappy retort.

  
Willa’s arched an eyebrow. “I’m still working.” She gestured to the books on the table.

  
Waverly grunted in response, not in the mood to deal with Willa’s jibes. She could almost feel the eldest Earp’s smirk as she ascended the stairs to her room, closing the door behind her she flopped down onto her bed, hands coming up to rub her eyes.

  
She had planned on getting some reading done for her fellowship, there was a new book she had found that promised to further her research that she had been doing on the gangs. Apparently the file she had given Dolls had been very useful and he was eager to take anything else that Waverly could give him.

  
Every time she opened the book beside her bed her mind flashed back to Nedley’s office, of lying half on Nicole as the taller woman’s kiss seared a fire in her blood. Every time she tried to focus on the words in front of her she remembered the feeling of being pressed against the officers body, her earmarked solid presence chasing away Waverly’s fear, and, just for a moment making her forget everything that had happened in the past week.

  
Eventually with a grunt of frustration she tossed the book to one side, sitting up she ran a hand through her hair.

  
_What am I going to do?_

* * *

The end of her shift couldn’t come quick enough for Nicole, so naturally every minute seemed to last an hour.

  
In a way it was a relief that she wasn’t out on patrol, because there was no way she would have been able to focus on anything with the memory of Waverly’s kiss still burning her lips. She definitely would have gotten herself shot or injured again with how distracted she was.

  
As it was Nicole spent most of her shift watching the clock and trying to figure out what the hell was going on between her and Waverly.

  
It was a slight understatement to state that she was getting mixed signals.

  
Nicole didn’t think she would ever complain about kissing Waverly, the smaller woman was like a drug to her; one taste and she was addicted, craving more. And whilst she would gladly kiss Waverly every second of the day if she could, she knew that right now there were too many things between them that needed to be addressed.

  
Waverly’s complete about turn in her interactions with her had left Nicole’s head spinning, and whilst the knowledge that Waverly had been worried about her, clearly still felt something for her warmed her heart somewhat and gave her a sense of hope that hadn’t been present for the last few days, Nicole could not forget the pain she had seen in Waverly’s eyes in the gym that day, or standing out in the rain. It was the kind of hurt that went deep, took roots and sometimes, even if feelings were still there, sometimes there was no way around that hurt, no way back.

  
That was not what Nicole wanted.

  
As soon as the clock struck six Nicole was gone, out the door with the swiftest of goodbyes thrown over her shoulder in the direction of the Sherriff’s office. She wanted to find Waverly as soon as possible, before all the carefully crafted words she had saved got lost or her confidence deserted her.

  
Shorty’s was her destination and the most likely place she knew she would find the youngest Earp. That and Nicole was pretty sure she was going to need a drink to give her the boost she needed.

  
The bar was crowded with people, just finishing a days work and looking to unwind with a drink before going home. The jukebox was playing soft music that floated over the sounds of the patrons and helped to calm Nicole’s somewhat frazzled nerves.

  
A quick glance round the bar didn’t yield any sign of Waverly, but there was a chance that she was in the back. Spying Gus behind the bar Nicole made a beeline for it with the intention of asking the older woman if Waverly was there.

  
This proved easier said than done, it seemed most of Purgatory wanted to speak to her about the shooting.

  
“Good to see you back up on your feet officer!”

  
“Hope you got the bastard!”

  
“Can I buy you a drink?”

  
Nicole politely nodded at each new comment, offering a word here or there as she attempted to make her way through the bar, declining the various offers to buy her a drink.

  
“Officer.” Gus greeted her with a curt nod as she finished filling a beer. “Glad to see a bullet doesn’t stop you drinking.”

  
“It’d take a lot more than a bullet to stop that.” Nicole replied. “Is Waverly about?” she tried to make the question sound nonchalant, but apparently she hasn’t succeeded if the slight twitch of Gus’ eyebrow was anything to go by.

  
“No she’s got the afternoon off today. Want me to pass on a message?”

  
“No its fine. I’ll catch her some other time.” Nicole couldn’t help the flush of disappointment at realising that Waverly wasn’t around, but at the same time a rush of relief. “Thanks anyway.”   
Gus gave her a tight smile along with a loaded look that Nicole couldn’t quite decipher. It was if the older woman knew a secret and she was trying to decide whether or not she wanted to tell it.

  
Nicole was about to turn and leave when a hand landed on her shoulder, causing her to jump slightly. Spinning to her left she was faced with the smiling face of Doc Holliday.

  
“Good evening officer.” Tipping his hat the older man offered her a wide smile.

  
She hadn’t spent much time with Doc, she had seen him of course, Doc was a popular man around town, known by everyone. He could often be seen with Wynonna, more than likely a bottle of whiskey between them. Nicole had seen the way the way that Doc looked at the middle Earp, it was the look of a man who would do anything for her, but knew that it would never really be enough, that it would only ever be a part of a larger picture. And he was ok with that.

  
Nicole thought it was sweet.

  
“Doc” she inclined her head in greeting.

  
“Can I tempt you to join me for a drink?” Doc gestured to an empty table.

  
“You may.” Nicole couldn’t help but smile at his actions, taking a seat as Doc signalled of Gus to bring them some drinks. She appeared a moment later with a bottle of whiskey for Doc and a beer for Nicole.

  
“One of these days you’ll carry your own damn drinks from the bar.” She teased.

  
“I believe you are right, but thankfully today is not that day.” Doc replied with a cheeky grin. As Gus went back behind the bar he turned his attention back to Nicole, lifting his glass. “I believe a toast is in order.”

  
“A toast to what?”

“Close shaves.”

  
“Close shaves?” Nicole allowed Doc to clink his glass against hers with a confused frown. “Oh!” realisation dawned as Doc’s eyes flitted to her side.

  
“Now I am no doctor, but surely one should not be out after bed and drinking the day after being shot.” Doc said after a moment of silence. “Not that your company is not desirable.”

  
“I don’t do well on bed rest. I’m more of a ‘bounce back out of bed despite the advice of the doctors and nurses’ kind of person.”

  
Doc let out a bark of laughter. “You are a woman after my own heart Officer.” He chortle a little more as he sipped at his drink before his expression turned a little more serious. “You were looking for young Miss Earp earlier?”

  
“Yes I was.”

  
“You two have become closer these past couple of months?”

  
“I guess you could say we have.” Nicole couldn’t help the wariness that entered her tone, unsure where Doc was going with this line of conversation.

  
“I am glad she has found a new friend. There is no one more deserving of good friendship and kindness than Waverly Earp. She is all that is good in this world.”

  
“Yes, she is pretty special.” Nicole knew that an affectionate lilt had accompanied her words, glaringly obvious to her. It seemed that Doc had noticed too, a smirk pulled at his lips causing his moustache to twitch. “I’m very glad to have met her.”

  
“I can tell she is glad to have met you too.” Doc observed her over the rim of his glass as she tried to avoid the snort of derision that his words had prompted from escaping her throat.

  
“You’re very kind to say so.”

  
“Although, there has been something bothering her these past days.”

  
“Oh really? Has she said what?” of course Nicole knew exactly what it was, but she wondered if Waverly would have confided in anyone about what had happened between the two of them. Doc seemed to be a good a person as any, his kind face and easy going nature made him easy to speak to.

  
“No, she is being usually closed off about it, which I will not lie, is a cause of concern.” Doc levelled her with a very serious look. “Do you have any idea what might have happened?”

  
For the second time in the space of an hour Nicole found herself on the end of a knowing look that she couldn’t quite decipher.

  
Nicole didn’t want to lie, but she didn’t want to give away secrets that Waverly was not happy to divulge on her own.

  
She was saved from having to answer by the arrival of Bobo Dell Rey.

  
Despite having never met him Nicole recognised Bobo immediately as he came to a stop by their table, his famous coat wrapped around him despite the heat of the bar.

  
“Well, well. Good evening Doc.” His voice was silky but devoid of any warmth.

  
“Bobo.” Doc replied curtly, the twinkle that had been present in his eyes since they sat down vanishing. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”

  
“Oh you know, just stopped for a drink among friends.”

  
“You won’t find any in here.”

  
Bobo’s smile dimmed a little, an ugly look flashing in his eyes.

  
“You’d be surprised how many friends I have around here Doc. People in very high places.”

  
Doc rolled his eyes, seemingly unimpressed by Bobo’s bragging.

  
Bobo bobbed down next to the table, eyes trained on Doc’s face. “How are the Earp girls?” He asked, smile widening as Doc stiffened slightly. Nicole felt herself bristling as well, something about the way Bobo said the Earp name set her teeth on edge. “Well I know how my wife is, but the other two, your favourites. “

  
Doc let out a small growl. “Leave them alone.”

  
“Oh I haven’t done anything...” Bobo let his sentence trail off, knowing exactly the effect it would have.

  
Doc was on his feet in a second, eyes blazing. “I don’t know what you have come back to town for, whatever horrible thing it is I don’t care.” His voice was low and hard, not loud enough to cause a scene. “But you will not go near those girls.”

  
“But we are family,” Bobo replied with a sniffer. “and Wynonna and I have so much...history.”

  
Doc looked like he was about to lunge forward and that’s when Nicole was urged into action. Rising from her chair she put herself between Doc and Bobo, one hand on Doc’s chest.  
“That is enough.” She put on her best police voice, stern with an air of authority that she hoped was enough to diffuse the tension.

  
“Well, I don’t believe we’ve had the pleasure.” Bobo looked her up and down, his leer making her feel a little nauseous. “You must be the officer who so gallantly took a bullet yesterday?”   
“A bullet from one of your thugs no doubt.” Doc muttered from behind Nicole.

  
“If you have no proof I would refrain from accusing me.” Bobo snapped, his calm and collected demeanour dropping showing the ugly mask beneath. “Otherwise you will see just how many powerful friends I have.”

  
“Unless you want to be arrested I would suggest you stop making threats.” Nicole warned, slowly,pushing Doc back a little so there was some space between them.

  
“You can put me in handcuffs anytime.” Bobo smirked, taking a step back he clicked his teeth together eyes flitting up and down her body again.

  
“I would suggest you remove yourself from this situation.” Nicole growled, heavily resisting the urge to take the man down.

  
“I can see where I’m not wanted.” Bobo put on a mock expression of hurt before chuckling softly. “I hope to see you again very soon officer, I have only the utmost respect for our law enforcement.”

  
Nicole grunted in response.

  
“Doc,” Bobo tipped his head in faux respect, “I’ll be seeing you around, perhaps the next time I pay a visit to Wynonna and sweet little Waverly.”

  
Something in the way Bobo let Waverly’s name fall from his mouth set Nicole’s blood boiling and this time it was her who'd taken a step forward before realising what she was doing, teeth gnashing together in fury.

  
“Officer.” Doc cautioned, his voice pulling her from her anger and back to rationality.

  
Forcing herself to maintain her calm Nicole failed to see the spark of interest that had flashed in Bobo’s eyes at her reaction to his mention of Waverly’s name.

  
By the time Nicole had collected her thoughts and calmed down Bobo had gone. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked that. Let me know what you thought in the comments! Hope to have a new chapter within a week but don't hold me to that! 
> 
> Until next time!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I am so sorry it's taken a month to update this story, I've been stupidly busy and hit a little bit of writers block that took a while to get over. Thank you to everyone who commented and left kudos on the last chapter I love reading all your comments! 
> 
> I'm finishing work for Christmas soon and hope to have some more time to write so I will do my best not to leave a gap like this again! I won't ramble on too long but let you guys read this chapter so please enjoy!

“GUESS WHAT?!”

The shriek that left Waverly’s mouth as Wynonna’s shout sounded less than a few inches form her ear was decidedly childlike, very much like the ones from her childhood when Wynonna used to hide in her wardrobe to scare her.

The cursing that followed was less childish.

“Fucking hell Wynonna! What the hell was that for?!” hand clasped over her rapidly beating heart Waverly shot her sister a dark glare.

Wynonna took no notice of the look. “One, it’s hilarious. Two, you were asking for it, sitting with your back to the door. Three, I actually do have news.”

“I don’t care whatever it is.” Waverly pouted.

“Yes, you do.” Twirling a chair so it was backwards Wynonna took a seat, arms resting on the back of the chair. “I’ve been recruited.”

“Recruited?”

“Yep.” Wynonna popped the ‘p’, a smug smile on her face.

“For what?” Waverly wasn’t in the mood for her sister’s cryptic games and gave a huff of annoyance to show it.

“Law enforcement.”

That did surprise her.

“Come again?”

“I have been hand-picked to work with the police.” Wynonna’s grin widened as she took in Waverly’s shock.

“The police? As in the police which you have for your _entire_ life referred to as ‘degenerate, doughnut stealing, fun sucking, prudish asshole’s.”

“Yes.”

“In what way are you possibly qualified to help the police?!”

“Well, it’s less the police and more Dolls’ Black Badge whatsit.”

“You’re going to be working with the man you’re sleeping with, in a highly-specialised government unit? What are you going to be doing? Showing Dolls the best way to sit in the back seat of a police car?” Waverly snorted.

“No! Cheeky shit!” Wynonna gave her a playful swipe, the slight upturning of her lips giving away her jest. “My ‘past experiences…’”

“Being a delinquent.” Waverly muttered.

“There’s one way of putting it.” Wynonna gave a slight shake of her head. “Anyway, according to Dolls, my previous experiences could provide valuable insight into his work.”

“Bet he’s only saying that because he’s getting ‘valuable insights’ into your pants.” Waverly anticipated Wynonna’s next swipe, dodging out of the way. “So, you’re working with him on the gangs?”

“I’m not at liberty to discuss that information Miss Earp. It’s classified.” Wynonna replied in a surprisingly good imitation of Dolls, complete with poker face, this expression dissolved quickly into her usual smirk. “But yeah it’s the gangs.”

“What would you know about the gangs here?” Waverly frowned. “You never joined any of them here.”

“Well no, but I know a lot of people from my delinquent days, useful contacts and all that.” Her tone was light but there was a look in her eye that Waverly was not used to seeing. The only other time she had seen it was in this kitchen they night they had had a drink with Bobo. It was as if Wynonna was remembering something she thought she had forgotten, something she wanted buried.

“Anyway, you’d better behave yourself now, I would hate to have to arrest my little sister.” Wynonna’s next words didn’t give Waverly time to dwell on her sister’s odd behaviour.

“I hate to burst your bubble but there’s no way Dolls is going to let you arrest anyone, half of Purgatory would be in the cells!”

“Would serve them right for laughing at me whenever I was arrested.” Wynonna muttered darkly. “Can I not do a citizen’s arrest?”

“No.”

“Damn.” Wynonna’s face fell slightly, but her smile was back a second later. “But I think I get a badge, and doughnuts! So many doughnuts!”

“Good to see you have your priorities right!” Waverly grunted.

“Doughnuts are _always_ a top priority.” Wynonna argued.

Waverly knew better than to argue with Wynonna about doughnuts so settled instead for rolling her eyes.

“You know.” Wynonna mused a moment later. “You’re the only Earp sister not to have been arrested.”

“When did Willa…?” Waverly frowned. “Oh yeah! Her senior year when her and Bobo got caught drink driving.”

“Yeah,” Wynonna chuckled, “I’ve never been happier than when I got to rub that in her face when she got home from the police station.”

“I remember.” Waverly laughed, the memory of Wynonna’s teasing bringing a smile to her face.

“What are you two laughing about?” Willa’s suspicious question pulled both Waverly and Wynonna from the joke.

“Oh, just reminiscing about the time you got arrested.” Wynonna replied airily, snickering when Willa’s expression darkened immediately.

“I thought we had agreed to never talk about that again.”

“No. You shouted we were never going to talk about it, and then stormed off to your room in a huff.” Wynonna replied. “I never agreed to anything.”

“Me either.”

Willa’s cold gaze jumped from sister to sister for a moment, and it looked like she might storm off.

But in a rare show Willa defied expectation and with a roll of her eyes crossed to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of beer.

“Whoa there Shawshank!” Wynonna held up her hands in mock surprise. “It’s only lunchtime, bit early for the alcohol.”

“Shut up Wynonna.” Willa’s response held no bite as she dangled a second bottle in front of Wynonna. “Don’t act like you haven’t already been thinking about having one since you woke up.”

“Touché.” Wynonna accepted the beer with a grin, twisting off the cap with and taking a long drag.

“Waves?” Waverly looked up in surprise, not just as the use of her childhood nickname, but who had used it. Willa held out another bottle, an almost gentle expression on her face. “Drink?”

“Oh, no thank you.” Waverly was still in surprise, she couldn’t remember the last time Willa had offered her something. “I’ll leave the day drinking to you too. But, I will have a cup of tea?”

For a moment, Waverly was sure she had overstepped the mark when Willa’s eyes narrowed. But once again Waverly was left surprised when her eldest sisters expression softened for the second time and she moved to the kettle with a soft tut.

Waverly and Wynonna exchanged puzzled looks as Willa bustled around with the kettle.

“Here you go.” Willa placed the mug in front of Waverly with a flourish.

“Thanks very much.” Waverly gingerly picked up the mug and when Willa’s back was turned gave it a slight suspicious sniff. Willa may be her sister but that didn’t mean she trusted her, she wouldn’t put it past her to put something nasty in her drink just for a joke.

“So, you’re in a really good mood Willa,” Wynonna probed suspiciously as the eldest Earp joined them at the table, “has something good happened, divorce with Bobo maybe?”

“No Wynonna!” Willa shot her sister an exasperated look. “I know you and Bobo don’t see eye to eye but he is my husband and I love him, that’s not going to change.”

“Fair enough.” Wynonna rolled her eyes at Waverly, who hid her smirk in her tea. “One can hope though.”

Willa ignored the second comment. “I just heard from my firm that we won a really big case this week, one I’ve been working on for forever.”

“Well that’s awesome!” Wynonna grinned. “You’ll be partner in no time!” reaching out she clinked her bottle against Willa’s, who offered her a smile in return.

“That’s the plan.”

The silence that descended on the table was a familiar one, one of three sisters who didn’t quite know how to be around each other, despite having spent years together in childhood. Although Waverly noticed that this one had less of an edge to it than previous days, it appeared that Willa being in a good mood made all the difference.

“So, I’ve been meaning to talk to you guys.” Willa’s voice was almost nervous and caused Wynonna and Waverly to shoot each other another confused look. Willa was never nervous.

“About what?”

“I realise that things have been a little…tense since I got back.” Wynonna gave a small snort at her words but Willa ignored it. “And I know we’ve never had the best relationship the three of us, especially since I…” Willa trailed off, the words left unspoken echoing loudly round the room.

Especially since she had married Bobo.

“Yeah, well. We’re sisters, we fight it’s what we do.” Wynonna shrugged.

Waverly wanted to disagree, the retort balanced on the tip of her tongue. They didn’t just fight like other siblings, their problems had much deeper roots. Waverly could not forget all the moments in her childhood where she had cried alone in her room after Willa had been particularly cruel, all the times she had felt pushed to the side when Willa and Wynonna had gone off together, leaving her behind and alone.

As much as Wynonna had sympathised with Waverly and tried to stand up for Waverly where she could, there were still times when Wynonna hadn’t realised just how nasty Willa had been to her youngest sister. That was why it seemed to be easier for Wynonna to shrug off the problems they had, dismiss them as if they were something easily fixed.

“We fight more than most.” She found herself saying before she could stop herself. Both Willa and Wynonna looked up, confusion flitting across Wynonna’s face, and what looked like annoyance flashing in Willa’s eyes briefly. “Well we do.”

“Even so,” Willa said slowly, some of the arrogant tone that Waverly was much more accustomed to hearing sneaking back into her voice. “I would like it if we could all try and get on a bit better, because I don’t know about you but I’m getting tired of walking on eggshells around each other.”

Waverly nearly spluttered out half her tea, managing to keep the liquid in her mouth at the last second.

“That would be good.” Wynonna said, but her eyebrows had raised in a sceptical expression that Waverly knew well, even Wynonna had seen the hypocrisy of Willa’s statement. “But that means that _everyone_ needs to try.”

“I will if you will.” Willa promised, her eyes flitting to Waverly, gauging her reaction.

“I will too.”

“Good!” Wynonna stood up, draining her beer. “Now that that’s settled I expect this house to be full of harmony and tranquillity from now on.”

“Wynonna, two words that can _never_ be used to describe you are harmonious and tranquil.” Willa snorted, Waverly chuckling her agreement as Wynonna scowled at them.

* * *

Waverly sat in her office, eyes skimming the page in front of her. She had been at this for hours, trying to successfully make it through the last few pages of the book, but her brain had been refusing to register the words for some time. Lifting subconsciously to her mouth her fingertips brushed against her lips, an action that had been happening with increasing regularity in the last few days.

Ever since she had kissed Nicole.

Realising what she was doing Waverly dropped her hand sharply, mentally chastising herself. Her mind had been firmly on the kiss since it had happened, no matter how hard she tried to convince herself that it had been an emotional response to Nicole getting shot, a spur of the moment action.

She was trying not to think about how much she wanted to kiss Nicole again.

_Stop it._

The mental hiss snapped her from her daze, rationality taking over once again. She was still angry, still not ready to trust Nicole again. That was why she had made no effort to get into contact with the other woman.

That’s what she told herself anyway.

No way was she admitting that if she saw the police officer again there was a high chance of her kissing her and not stopping.

She knew that Nicole had been looking for her, Gus had mentioned it when she had stopped by for dinner. The older woman had questioned if everything was ok, accompanied by a look which made Waverly feel like a small girl again, guilty when she’d been asked if she stole a cookie from the jar and insisted she hadn’t done it.

Not for the first-time Waverly wondered if Gus had figured it out. Her aunt had always been very observant and the look in her eye was one filled with hidden knowledge.

Waverly always chickened out of asking.

And so what if she’d rescheduled her shifts at Shorty’s for the past few days, working when she knew Nicole would be at work just in case Nicole happened to come in again?

And maybe, yes, she was ducking her head and walking faster every time she saw a police squad car trundling up the road, and maybe every flash of red she saw had her heart speeding up and a sweat breaking out on her palms.

Maybe she was doing all of these things but it didn’t mean she was being a coward. She was doing the sensible thing, sorting out her thoughts and emotions before she spoke to Nicole again.

Even Waverly couldn’t kid herself for long.

She was a coward.

Just like the morning she had run away. She had weighed up the options, confront the problem head on, or bury it.

It had been far too easy to choose the latter. Again.

She’d tried to ignore it but Nicole’s words had hit home, more than she had expected. She did have to shoulder some of the responsibility for what had happened. If she hadn’t had run away that morning she could have avoided all of this.

The thought left a sour taste in her mouth.

Waverly was not used to being in the wrong, she wasn’t very good at dealing with it.

With a growl of frustration that would have sounded more natural on a tiger Waverly slapped her hands onto her desk in a bid to pull herself away from her guilt. She needed to be focused, her fellowship papers and research were not going to write themselves and she couldn’t afford to get distracted now.

Even if the chocolate eyes that swam though her daydreams and the ghost of soft lips moving against her own were _very_ pleasant distractions.

Realising her hand had once again raised to her lips, lost in her daydream about kissing Nicole. Waverly dropped her hand as if she had been burnt, face morphing into a scowl.

“Pull yourself together! Stop acting so pathetic!”

“That’s an interesting pep talk.”

The voice from the doorway took Waverly by surprise, looking up she was met with Chrissy’s mischievous grin. “Tough morning?”

“Something like that.” Waverly smiled.

“Well fortunately, I know just the cure!” Chrissy crossed to Waverly’s desk and leaning forward, closed the book she had been unsuccessfully trying to read. “Lunch with your best friend.”

“I really shouldn’t. I have a lot of…”

“I’m buying.”

Even Waverly couldn’t say no to that.

Thankfully they didn’t end up in Shorty’s, but instead in Purgatory’s only pizzeria. Being lunchtime on a weekday the restaurant was pretty quiet and they were able to secure seats by the window that afforded them a good look out onto the street,

The wait for their food was spent catching up on what they had missed in each other’s lives the past couple of weeks. Waverly was able to have a good moan about Willa, knowing Chrissy understood their fraught relationship. As she had expected her best friend was as dismissive of Willa as she had been. _“Oh please! Willa wouldn’t know how to walk on eggshells if her life depended on it!”_

Chrissy for her part had been busy working in Purgatory’s only bank, the Sherriff’s daughter had always had a way with numbers that Waverly envied and had found working in the bank to be a worthy challenge. For now.

“I’ve been thinking about looking for other jobs in some of the big cities, you know ones that offer more training?”

“That would be so cool!” Waverly was enthusiastic in her reply, but tried to ignore the little voice that complained how much she would miss her best friend if she moved. “You definitely should! Nobody wants to stay cooped up in this town forever.” She tried not think about how she should probably take her own advice.

“True that! Dad will freak though!” Chrissy laughed. “I broached the subject with him a few years back and he almost had a…what’s wrong?!”

Her surprised question had been prompted by Waverly ducking her head sharply away from the window after spotting a flash of the distinctive tan coloured trousers worn by Purgatory’s finest. It hadn’t been Nicole, instead one of the older male officers that Wynonna had dubbed ‘Officer Grump’, but the sight of it had been enough to set Waverly’s pulse racing.

 “What?! Nothing’s wrong. Why would you think anything is wrong?!”

Chrissy arched an eyebrow. “Han anyone ever told you you’re a terrible liar?”

“What?”

“Come on Waverly! I’ve known you since we were kids, do you really think I don’t know when something is going on with you! So, tell me what’s happening with you?”

“I’ve just been stressed out with the fellowship and Willa being back.” It wasn’t a complete lie; those things were stressing her out.

“Bullshit!” Chrissy snorted. “I know it’s more than that. You’ve been different ever since that night.”

“What night?” Waverly played dumb, not expecting to fool Chrissy for a second.

She didn’t.

“You know what night. Ever since you went home with that mystery person something has been different. Don’t try and deny it!” Waverly had opened her mouth to protest but was shut down quickly. “What really happened? Because whatever it is I can clearly see that its clearly causing you distress? Were you hurt?” Chrissy’s face took on a concerned edge. “Maybe I can help.”

Waverly had her mouth open, lie all ready on the tip of her tongue when she stopped.

In that moment, she was tired of lying, tired of having no-none to talk to, tired of feeling alone and confused.

Taking a deep breath Waverly steeled herself to say the words she had not said out loud to anyone else.

“ _Isleptwithawoman_!!”

_Oh well that was eloquent._

Chrissy’s expression showed that she hadn’t understood a word. “What was that?”

“That night. I slept…with a woman.” The words were more hesitant this time, but at least there’s a space between them this time the morphing of Chrissy’s face from confusion to mild shock showed that they had been understandable.

“Oh.”

Waverly tensed, ready to bolt from the table if it looked like Chrissy had a problem with what she had just admitted.

“Well that does explain a lot.”

Waverly froze, bum a few centimetres off the seat. “It does?”

“Yes!” Chrissy leant forward, hand reaching across the table to grasp Waverly’s, a tender smile pulling her lips. “And don’t you think for a second that I have any kind of problem with what you’ve just said, so sit your ass back down!”

Waverly complied immediately, a heavy sigh of relief leaving her. Already she could feel some of the weight that had been burdening her for months floating away like balloons. “What does it explain?”

“Your behaviour,” Chrissy took a sip of her wine, “all of the avoidance, the smoke screen. It didn’t really make sense that you would be so secretive about some guy.”

“I suppose.” Waverly took a sip of her own drink, allowing the alcohol to help free up some of the residual tension running through her veins. “I didn’t like lying to you, I just…” Waverly paused and took another sip of her drink before hanging her head, a twinge of shame flickering through her. “…I just didn’t know how to tell you.”

“Hey,” Chrissy said softly, leaning over once again to place a comforting hand on Waverly’s wrist, “you have _nothing_ to feel bad about! If you weren’t ready to tell me then I respect that, and I’m grateful that you trusted me enough now to tell me.”

Waverly managed a tender smile, thankful not for the first time that she had Chrissy as her best friend.

“So…” Chrissy seemed hesitant to ask her next question. “…does this mean you’re gay?”

Waverly considered the question, one that she had been asking herself over and over again ever since that night. “I…honestly don’t know.” She admitted after a few moments. “I mean, I’m pretty sure I’m not straight, but I’m not sure if this means I like only girls now, or just…this girl.”

“So, you know who it was?!” Chrissy almost squawked. “Who is she? Do we know her?! Does she live here?! Who was it?!”

Waverly hesitated again, not sure how much she was actually willing to divulge to Chrissy about that night. It was one thing to admit that she had slept with a woman, but another entirely to admit that it was someone that they knew, that made this far more real.

A flash of red out of the corner of her eye diverted Waverly’s attention as she thought and on instinct she turned her head to look, heart starting to pound faster when she noticed the very object of their conversation (even if Chrissy didn’t know it) walking down the road. Waverly couldn’t help but feel the dryness in her throat as her eyes tracked the officer’s movements.

“Waverly…?” for the second time in a few minutes Chrissy frowned at her friend’s odd behaviour. Craning her head she tried to see where Waverly was looking, eyes landing on Nicole even as Waverly tried to tear her gaze away.

Waverly watched as Chrissy’s focus darted between her and Nicole, eyes narrowing suspiciously, when, suddenly understanding dawned and her jaw dropped.

“Oh my god! You and Nicole?!” she screeched so loudly that Waverly was sure that Nicole was going to hear them and looked frantically back out the window to check.

Luckily the officer was on the other side of the street and was deep in conversation with a little small older lady who appeared to be chatting her ear off.

“You and Nicole?!” Waverly winced as Chrissy screeched again, voice going impossibly higher, finger pointing between Waverly and Nicole with short stabbing motions.

She considered lying, but she knew the truth was written all over her face.

She conceded. “Yes.”

Chrissy shook her head, seemingly in disbelief. Then, a large grin split her face and a loud laugh burst from her mouth as she took a sip of her wine.

“Well! That _really_ explains a lot!”

“What?”

“The way you two act around each other!” Chrissy replied with a knowledgeable smirk. “It’s amazing I didn’t see it before.”

“What do you mean the way we act around each other?”

“There’s always been a kind of...tension when you two are in the same room. Up until now I could never figure out what it was, but now, now it all makes sense!” Chrissy shook her head with a chuckle. “So, have you always known it was Nicole? I mean you said you didn’t remember but I’m assuming that was because you didn’t want to say who it was.”

“That part was true.” Waverly sighed. “Up until a week or so I had no idea of who I had slept with.”

Chrissy look confused. “So how did you...?” pausing her best friend flagged down the waiter and ordered another bottle of wine. “I think you had better start at the beginning.”

Waverly told her everything, all that had happened since she had lost Chrissy and Wynonna in the bar that night. Of course, she left out most of the more intimate details about her night with Nicole, but the blush that coloured her cheeks when she touched upon it was enough to have Chrissy smirking and insisting that Waverly tell her all about it at a later date. 

Waverly couldn’t help but feel the uneasiness that had dominated her world for the last few months squeeze around her heart as she described the events of the days and weeks following that night, the feeling of loneliness and isolation. Not sure what was happening but not knowing who to talk you about it, wrestling with the knowledge that everything she had ever known about herself was changing, whilst so many other things stayed the same.

“Oh Waverly.” Chrissy muttered as tears collected in her friend’s eyes. “I’m so sorry you didn’t feel you could come and speak to me about it.”

“It’s not your fault.” Waverly sniffed. “I wanted to tell someone, there just never seemed to be a way to broach the subject and the longer I left it, the more difficult it became.”

Waverly was choosing to ignore that her current excuse was the one Nicole had used, and the one that Waverly herself had scoffed at.

With some prompting from Chrissy when she falters Waverly tells her about discovering that it was Nicole she had gone home with, about that tattoo and the return of her memories. Chrissy doesn’t speak again as Waverly recounted the trauma of the past week, from her fight with Nicole at the homestead to the panic she’d felt when the man at Shorty’s told her that Nicole had been shot.

When her story finally comes to an end after explaining about the kiss and her mixed feelings of the past few days Waverly couldn’t help but feel a million times lighter than when they had walked into the restaurant. The relief that someone else knew, that she wasn’t dealing with alone was almost enough to make her cry out.

“Wow.” Chrissy breathed as Waverly finished talking. “I don’t know how you’ve carried all of that around for so long all by yourself, but if it was me, I would have gone mad by now.”

“Trust me there were moments I thought I had.”

“That’s some story.” Chrissy chuckled, still clearly trying to process what she had been told. “I still can’t believe you slept with Nicole! How was it? I remember you saying the sex was great, was it better with a woman?”

Waverly couldn’t help but laugh at the question, a blush rising on her cheeks. “It was the best I’ve ever had.” She finally admitted bashfully.

Chrissy whooped loudly, startling the waiter who was walking next to the table with a bottle of water. She apologised round a laugh, waggling her eyebrows at Waverly as the man bustled away. “So Nicole Haught really is Hot!”

“Good lord!” Waverly mumbled at the awful pun, face now scarlet.

“So I’m confused about something.” Chrissy finally finished laughed.

“What?”

“If Nicole was _so_ good, and you two are now such good friends. Is there a reason you haven’t spoken to her since you barged in and kissed her after she was shot?!”

“Were you not listening when I told you about the part where she lied to me for months?!” Waverly asked incredulously.

“I was listening and yes what she did was awful, but Waverly, you and I both know that there’s something happening here, between you and Nicole. Are you really going to throw that away?”

“She lied! How am I supposed to trust her again!” Waverly shook her head. “Even if there was something happening here, I don’t know if I could open myself up to be hurt like that again.”

“I understand that.” Chrissy said soothingly. “But, it seems to me that Nicole isn’t the only one to blame for this situation. You ran away that morning.”

The words that had been haunting Waverly since her fight with Nicole at the homestead, spoken by her best friends hit Waverly harder than she had anticipated, even though she had seen them coming.

“You’re supposed to be on my side.” She whined.

Chrissy rolled her eyes. “Of course I’m on your side Waverly, and trust me when I next see Nicole she will be getting a glare more ferocious than any other she’s ever received.”

Waverly chuckled at that, Chrissy could be pretty intimidating when she wanted to be, her friend wasn’t done however.

“But it seems to me that you guys haven’t sat down and talked about this properly without shouting at each other, and if I’m being honest I really think you need to.”

“But...”

“From what you’ve said Nicole wants to explain herself and I think you should give her that chance.” Leaning across the table Chrissy forced Waverly to make eye contact with her, eyes softening in sympathy. “Regardless of what’s going on Nicole is probably the best person to speak to about how you’re feeling, all the confusion you’ve been going through, trying to work out how you’re feeling she probably knows exactly how you feel.”

Chrissy was right and Waverly knew it.

That didn’t stop her pouting.

Finally, she conceded. “Fine. I will speak to her.”

Chrissy grinned. “Good. Now! I want every gory detail about that night, do not leave anything out!”

* * *

Waverly checked her watch for what felt like the millionth time, huffing impatiently as time seemed to be going by at a crawl.

She had seriously debated not going, there were a million reasons that this was a terrible idea, but ignoring Chrissy was not something that was easily done, especially when her best friend had talked so much sense.

So that was how she now found herself outside the police station, waiting anxiously for the day shift, which she knew Nicole was on, to finish in the hopes of catching the officer. There had been a few false alarms, officers finishing their shifts and shooting the youngest Earp odd looks when she leapt away from her jeep nervously, only to collapse back against it when she looked at them.

She almost missed Nicole because of these false alarms, looking up just in time to see the redhead heading for her pickup truck. With a squeak of surprise, she pushed herself off her jeep and scrambled after Nicole.

“Nicole, wait!”

Turning at the sound of her name Nicole could not have looked more surprised at who was chasing her if Waverly had jammed a gun in her face. “Waverly? Is everything OK?” She asked as Waverly skidded to a halt in front of her.

“Everything’s fine.” Waverly was slightly breathless and paused to catch her breath. “Well...I mean it’s not fine...” She made a vague gesture with her hand and Nicole winced, clearly understanding the unspoken meaning behind the sentence.

Things were not fine between them.

Silence descended as Waverly worked to find a way to say the words she had been chanting in her head since she had pulled her jeep up outside the station.

“Was there something I can…”

“We need to talk.”

Waverly hadn’t meant to blurt it out like that, cutting Nicole off, and the officer look surprised.

“Err…”

“I mean, really talk. Not shouting.” Waverly rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly, knowing full well that the shouting comment was aimed more at herself than Nicole.

“Sure.”

Nicole understandably looked a little confused, not sure what to make of this latest interaction between the two of them, but she still followed Waverly as she headed back to her jeep.

This was not a conversation Waverly wanted to have in Shorty’s, there were too many prying eyes. The homestead was out of the question too, both Wynonna and Willa were there drinking the afternoon away.

The diner up the street from Shorty’s was the most logical choice, and it was empty enough that they were able to secure a corner booth away from the other patrons.

“So…” Nicole rubbed her thighs nervously after the waitress had taken their orders and retreated. “…what did you want to talk to me about?” Waverly raised her eyebrows and Nicole chuckled. “Right stupid question.”

Waverly chuckled nervously, words again deserting her. It was only when Nicole shifted in her seat and winced slightly, hand flitting to her side that Waverly remembered that the other woman had been _shot_ only a few days ago.

“How are you feeling?” she asked, gesturing to Nicole’s wound.

“Oh, I’m fine.” Nicole followed the movement of her hand with her eyes. “It just itches more than anything now.”

Waverly was faced with an itch of her own, an itching to reach out and trace the tender skin that she knew was under the shirt. The urge was so strong that Waverly had to clench her hands into fists under the table to keep from reaching across.

“So, we should…talk?” Waverly hated how her usually eloquent speech seemed to fall away whenever Nicole fixed her with the piercing stare she was using right now.

“Yeah we should.”

“When I said that was still pissed off at you I meant it.” Waverly started looking down at her hands on her lap. “But, I shouldn’t have just barged in the way I did the other day and left, it was…rude of me.”

“It certainly did come as a surprise.” Nicole said and Waverly could have sworn that the officer also mumbled ‘A nice surprise.’ under her breath.

“I’m also sorry that I’ve been avoiding you for the last few days.”

“So it wasn’t just in my head.” Nicole’s face twitched in a brief smile, but her eyes couldn’t help but show the hurt that she was obviously feeling and Waverly couldn’t help but feel a flush of guilt.

“No, and I shouldn’t have done that, I don’t usually run away from things. But with you…” Waverly left the sentence hanging, both remembering all too well the three times that Waverly had now run away from Nicole.

“Before you carry on, I need to speak.” Nicole looked down at her own hands. “I know it doesn’t begin to make up for lying for so long, but I am so sorry that I did, and I know you don’t believe me but there were so many times when I wanted to tell you. I was _going_ to, the night before you found out.”

Waverly cast her mind back to the night before her whole world had been turned upside down again, the night she had told Nicole how she felt about her. She remembered being pressed against Nicole’s body, feeling the now familiar fire spreading through every nerve, their lips so close that the anticipation had almost killed her.

The she remembered Nicole pushing her back, insisting that she had something to tell Waverly.

“You still waited so long.” She can’t help the accusation in her tone, even though her voice comes out as barely a whisper.

Nicole bowed her head at the words, her reply having to wait as the waitress brought over their coffee. After she left Nicole looked back up again.

“I know I did, and I hated myself a little bit more every day that went by and I said nothing.” Nicole’s features were contorted into a frown that Waverly wasn’t used to seeing, a frown that looked out of place on her usually smiling face, she looked up and made eye contact with Waverly, eyes burning with an anger that Waverly knew wasn’t directed at her, but on herself. “I had my reasons for not telling you, and not all of them were good ones.”

“What reasons?” the question left Waverly’s mouth before she could stop it.

“Some of them selfish.” Nicole admitted. “I knew it wasn’t right and I knew I should do it, I should tell you but I had to protect myself too.” She paused, waiting for Waverly to interject but the youngest Earp had sensed that she should let Nicole talk, Chrissy’s words still fresh in her mind.

Nicole took a deep breath and a long sip of her coffee before she continued speaking. “I don’t usually go home with people like we did that night, but there was something about you Waverly, I know you felt it too, and I’ll admit that I pushed aside the part of me that warned you wouldn’t be there in the morning in the hope that you would be. I wanted you to be.”

Once again Waverly couldn’t help but feel a twinge of guilt.

“When I saw you running out the door, I assumed you’d woken up and started to freak out, and it hurt because I thought you regretted coming home with me, being with me, and I’m not going to lie but I was angry. I was angry at you for running away without waiting to speak about it, and I was angry at myself for allowing the situation to get as far as it did, for ending up as just another experiment.”

Waverly flinched at the last few words, the urge to fire back an angry retort rising in her throat. She restrained herself, biting her lip. She could recognise the truth in what Nicole had said, but that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt.

“Then seeing you again, and realising that you didn’t remember, hearing you say you wanted to forget it happened…” Nicole faltered, taking another sip of her coffee. “I knew I should tell you then, get it over with even if it meant you hated me…but then you smiled at me and…”

Waverly could feel her heart beating faster. “And what?”

“I just couldn’t bear the thought of taking that smile off your face.”

The words took Waverly by surprise and she swore that her breath caught in her throat.

“You still should have told me.”

“I know!” Nicole sighed, rubbing her face with her hands before running a hand over her hair.

“I spent _so_ many nights lying awake, trying to pick apart that night, trying to work out what had happened, what it meant for me and my life.” Waverly was speaking more to her coffee than Nicole, but she knew that if she made eye contact with the other woman she wouldn’t say what she needed to. “It threw so many things I thought I knew about myself up in the air, and I had no idea where they were going to land, and I had no one to turn to.” Blinking back the tears that were threatening to strike Waverly glanced up to see Nicole watching her, eyes full of remorse and guilt.

“All my life people have kept things from me, as the youngest in my family everyone else has made decisions about when I should know things, about what I can handle, what is best for me. My mother’s cancer, my father’s alcohol problems, Wynonna’s trouble with the law. Every major event in my life has been moderated and censored by other people claiming they know what is best for me.”

“Waverly I never meant to…”

“I know I need to take some of the blame, I ran away because I didn’t know how to cope with waking up next to you. I got scared and I took the easy way out, and I have been paying for that mistake every day since then, I was so lost and confused about who I was, and then you came along. I trusted you, I fell for you!” Waverly felt a tear slip down her cheek and hastily wiped it away, not failing to see the way Nicole’s hand jerked up.

“That night was one of the best of my life, even when I couldn’t remember it, I have never felt the way I felt when I was with you.” Waverly locked eyes with Nicole, needing her to see that she was telling the truth.

“Neither have I.” the response came as a whisper. “Waverly is there any way you can forgive me? Is there any way we can move forward?” Nicole reached across the table, hand brushing against Waverly’s. It was the first time they had touched since their kiss in the sheriff’s office and both women could feel the spark that crackled at the contact.

“I want to.”

It was only when the words left her mouth that Waverly realised that she meant them.

“I’m sensing a but?”

“Right now, I’m still hurt and I’m still processing. I’m not going to pretend I fully understand why you didn’t tell me, but I do know that I don’t want to be angry anymore. There’s too much anger in my family and I can’t hold onto it.”

“I understand.” Nicole hadn’t moved her hand and Waverly found the thumb that was skating over the skin on the back of her hand was soothing as she tried to control the fluctuating emotions that twisted in her stomach. Desire, sadness, hope and despair all competing to be heard and Waverly didn’t know which to listen to.

“You said you fell for me?” Nicole was staring down at their hands. “Do you still feel anything for me?”

“I…” Waverly paused, not wanting to rush into an answer. The obvious answer to the question was of course a resounding ‘yes’ she couldn’t look at Nicole without the urge to kiss her nearly overtaking her, but she knew that to rush into something now would ruin them. Not when she was sure she could fully forgive Nicole not telling her.

“I do.” She said finally. “But, I can’t act on those feelings now, it’s not fair on me and it’s not fair on you. I need time to figure this out. ”

“Ok.” Nicole looked disappointed, but she quickly covered it with a smile, even if it didn’t fully reach her eyes. “I understand if you don’t want to speak to me again.”

“I don’t…” the thought of not speaking to Nicole again pushed down the anger that had been fighting to be heard and Waverly felt the word catch in her throat. “…I want you in my life. I just don’t know how to…”

Nicole gave her hand a squeeze. “You don’t have to explain. I hope we can be friends Waverly, I want to prove to you how sorry I am, even if it means only ever being your friend.”

“I think we will just have to wait and see.” Waverly stood, pulling her hand away from Nicole’s, both women immediately missing the contact. “I’m glad we talked today.”

“Me too.”

“I’ll see you around Nicole.”

Gathering her bag Waverly turned and walked out of the dinner, feeling for the first time in weeks that she wasn’t running away, but that she was leaving the conversation where it needed to end.

The world suddenly seemed a little lighter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last conversation between Waverly and Nicole was super difficult to get right and I hope that I managed to get it right! As always please let me know what you thought in the comments and come and chat to me on tumblr if you fancy. 
> 
> The next chapter will be shorter and focused on Bobo so hope to have it written soon. 
> 
> If I don't have the next chapter by Christmas I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and a great New Year!!! 
> 
> Until next time!


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy belated new year all! This chapter took me longer than I anticipated to write, despite being one of the shortest and large parts of it have been continually deleted and rewritten so apologies if the quality has suffered at all because of the changes. I hope you enjoy it!

It was a beautiful night, stars blanketed the cloudless sky, sparkling against the inky blackness whilst the moon hung large and full, its pale ethereal light bathing the ground with a white glow.

The silence of the night, which up until this point had been interrupted by only the occasional hoot of an owl, was broken by the loud rumbling of an old rusty pick-up truck, the headlights carving a path through the darkness as it trundled up the uneven dirt track, finally coming to a halt outside an abandoned ramshackle.

The door of the truck opened and a man stepped out. He was tall, dressed in dusty tatty clothes that had seen better days, with a receding hairline and scruffy moustache covering his upper lip. A black and red tattoo stretched down the right side of his face and his teeth had been filed into sharp points.

For a moment he stood, eyes roving the dark horizon, as if looking for something that only he could see, before heading into the shack.

Bobo was waiting for him.

He’s not alone, three other men, all with the same tattoos are piled into the small room, each standing tense and alert. Bobo sat on the only intact chair, inspecting his fingernails with the nonchalant air of someone who knows that they command the room. The solitary lamp placed on the floor cast flickering shadows onto his face.

“You’re late.”

The newcomer bristled at the two softly spoken words.

“I was finishing up some business when you called, business that couldn’t wait until morning.”

“I don’t care what hooker you were fucking this time.” Bobo look up from his nails and fixed the man with a hard stare. “When I call, you come immediately Red.”

“Believe me I was trying too.” The man, Red, muttered, prompting a soft chuckle from one of the other men.

Bobo didn’t smile. Rising slowly, he crossed the room, each step sending a loud creak echoing round the now silent room. He came to a stop less than two feet away from Red, eyes locked menacingly on the other man’s face, causing him to shift minutely on his feet. For a moment, there was dead silence, both men watching each other intently.

Suddenly, and without warning Bobo grabbed Red by the front of his jacket and slammed him hard into the nearest wall.

“I am in charge.” Bobo’s voice was a low snarl, akin to that of a wolf, raw power that rumbled just beneath the surface. “What I say, goes.”

“I…”

“In my time away you seem to have forgotten this.” Bobo fists flexed against Red’s chest, fingertips digging in tightly. “That. Will. Not. Do.” The tone of his voice was that of a disappointed parent, soft and reasonably unthreatening, but this was in stark contrast to the shadows cast on his face by the light of the lamp, causing his eyes to glow almost red, and transforming him, making him look more like a demon than man.

Red tried to keep his face neutral, but he couldn’t stop the fear that flashed in his eyes. Bobo noticed it immediately, a wolfish grin slowly stretching his lips.

“It appears you understand.” He whispered.

Releasing Red, he took a step back, smoothing down the jacket as if nothing had happened. Retreating to his chair Bobo settled back down, reaching into a pocket he pulled out a packet of cigarettes. Nobody spoke as he slowly lit and took the first drag, smoke floating lazily up into the air.

“Where have you been?” it was Red who broke the silence, the defiance in his tone had been replaced by the kind of reverence one might reserve for a monarch.

“All over.” Bobo replied lazily, taking another drag of the cigarette.

“Why have you come back?”

Bobo lowered the cigarette, smoke curling up around his nose and eyes. “It was time.”

The explanation didn’t seem to satisfy the men in the room, they glanced at each other, shifting nervously on their feet, none brave enough to say anything.

Except Red.

“Time for what? No disrespect boss but you’ve been gone for years and we haven’t heard for years either. We were starting to think you’d forgotten about us.”

Silence greeted his words, eyes shifting from Red to Bobo, nobody quite sure how he would take Red’s question.

Bobo didn’t speak until he had finished his cigarette, it was a technique that many of the men who worked for him were familiar with. The silence was deafening, suffocating, effective.

Flicking the butt of his cigarette into the wall Bobo turned to look back to Red. “Forgotten about you?” the repeated statement sounded surprised. “I’m hurt you think that.”

“I didn’t mean anything like…”

“I have dedicated my life to the Revenants.” Bobo continued speaking in his soft tone that somehow seemed to echo round the room louder than if he had been speaking. “You would be nothing but a rabid pack of thugs, tearing yourself apart had it not been for my leadership and guidance. You were content to just indulge in petty theft and assault, it was me who made you realise your potential and formed and helped you extend our reach beyond the borders of this town.” He paused in his pacing, coming to a stop next to Red. “Now my ‘devotion’ may not be as…” running a finger down Red’s tattoo he raised an eyebrow. “… _pronounced_ as some of you, but rest assured that my absence was only to further our standing, and not because I have _forgotten_ you.”

“I’m sorry.” Red muttered, eyes flickering down to his shoes in an uncharacteristic moment of contrition.

“To answer your previous question about why I have come back, the reason is simple. Money.”

“Money?” This time it was one of the men behind Bobo who spoke.

“Yes, money.”

“Forgive us sir but we thought it might be something a bit grander than money that brought you back here.”

Bobo grinned, teeth flashing menacingly. “Name one thing you miserable cretins want more than money.”

None of them had anything to say to that.

“What about the Earp’s?”

Bobo cocked his head at the question, the barest hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

“What about them?”

“Well, you always said you had unfinished business with them. Hell, we all do.”

The Earp family had long been enemies of the Revenant gang, all the way back to Wyatt Earp. With every generation that followed their ancestors into law enforcement the feud and hatred deepened until it had become a small war contained within Purgatory’s boundaries. Many members of the gang over the years had been imprisoned or killed at the hands of an Earp, the mantle passing from generation to generation. Many of the current members had experienced run ins with Ward Earp before his death. The father of the Wynonna and her sisters had been relentless in his pursuit of the gang, causing them more problems than any other since Wyatt Earp himself.

“You swore they would pay.” Red continued when Bobo didn’t speak, his confidence returning. “You promised they would answer for all that they’ve done.”

“Do you not trust me to keep my word?”

“Well you married one of them.”

A deathly silence fell on the cabin. Nobody moved. Nobody blinked. All eyes were trained on Bobo and Red, the latter looking more surprised than anything that the words had come out of his mouth, but he held his ground as Bobo advanced towards him again.

“This is the second time tonight you have questioned my loyalty.” Bobo murmured, his voice still eerily calm. “A more suspicious man would get paranoid that you have become _far_ too comfortable in my absence, that you might try to…usurp my position by insinuating I’m not fit to lead. That my interests have been…compromised.” Bobo was so close now that there was barely an inch between him and Red.

“Is that what you’re trying to do?”

“No boss.” Red replied instantly.

“You’re lucky I am not more of a suspicious man.” Bobo tutted before his expression cleared. “But you ask a good question.”

A soft murmur of surprise rippled briefly round the room. Bobo rarely praised.

“Willa is not like the other Earp’s. Indeed, I believe we would be hard pressed to find one of our esteemed members who hates the name and all it stands for more than Willa.” Bobo spoke after a moments silence. “Like so many of us she despises the fawning that historians and tourists pay to her family’s legacy. It is truly one of the most remarkable things about her, and the first thing I fell in love with.”

Red’s eyebrows raised in surprise. “She knows what you did? She knows about that night?”

“No.” Bobo spoke the single word as if it pained him. “Willa can never find out about what happened.” The finality of his tone stopped anyone from questioning him further on that subject.

One of the other men, Levi, gathered the courage to speak from his place by the door. “You mentioned money, what did you have in mind?”

Bobo turned at the new voice, a slow sneer pulling at his lips, causing Levi to shrink back against the door, as if expecting punishment for speaking.

“And now we get down to the reason why I called you here tonight. Follow me.”

The men in the room gazed at each other, mystified, as Bobo strode to the door of the shack, pulling it open the moonlight flooded into the room, causing the men to scrunch their eyes up against the light, following their leader out into the stillness of the night.

Bobo walked away from the shack, up a slope that levelled out to a ridge overlooking the town and surrounding area. The moonlight was strong enough that it bathed the landscape in a beautiful white glow, whilst the streetlights and houses in the town twinkled orange, like a thousand fireflies dancing in the night.

“Purgatory.” Bobo swept his arm out in a grand gesture towards the town. “The most fitting name ever bestowed on a town. A town perfectly content to trudge along in the same mundane, monotonous, soul crushing way it has done for generations, and the people, the very dregs of humanity themselves. Without ambition, lust or vision, happy to spend their lives tucked away in their little corner of the world, unable to see the potential that lies out there.” His hand tracked across to the wide expanse of wilderness that boarded the town.

His men supressed sighs and eye rolls, over the years they had become used to Bobo’s grand speeches, often sprouting nonsense as if quoting from a dense text he had read somewhere. They had learnt long ago that to make even a single noise during one of these speeches could be very detrimental to one’s health.

“But,” Bobo turned to face the, his eyes flashing in the moonlight. “Even in the dreariest of places there is potential.” Pointing to a spot removed from the town he asked. “What is that over there?”

For a moment no one responded, all knew what Bobo was pointing at, but weren’t sure why he needed to be told.

“It’s the Earp homestead.” Levi ventured when the silence became too uncomfortable.

“Exactly!” Bobo grinned. “Now, I know what you’re all wondering why I’ve pointed out something that we all know is there. Well, we all know the stories of how Wyatt Earp took down outlaws and bandits with his trusted Peacemaker.” He mimed shooting a pistol, a soft chuckle rumbling in his chest.

“What you probably didn’t know is that Wyatt was _very_ well paid for his services. Much more than your average lawman. By the time he died, old Wyatt had amassed quite the fortune.”

“How much are we talking about?” Red asked, his interest piqued.

“Millions.”

Bobo smiled as the single word had its desired effect, sending an excited murmur around the men.

“The Earp family has never been rich though.” Red had always been more sceptical than his fellow gang members. “I’ve never heard of any money being passed down.”

“That’s because the money never went to his kids.” Bobo replied. “For reasons known only to him. Wyatt decided to hide his money rather than leave it for the next generation. Very few people know of its existence, and even fewer its location.”

“Location? Does that, like, mean its buried” Levi frowned.

“I believe so yes, somewhere on the Earp land.”

“A treasure hunt?! Your big plan for us is a treasure hunt?!” Red’s voice was tinged with incredulity, whilst straining to maintain a respectful tone.

“If you want to call it that.” Bobo shrugged, seemingly unaffected by Red’s scepticism. “Myself? I prefer to see this as an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.” He looked back out towards the homestead, it’s windows illuminated by a few lights before speaking again.

“You asked about my plans for the Earp girls. Well it starts with finding that money. And when we have it…” Bobo turned back to his men, eyes alight with excitement. “…we can give them the payback they deserve.”

* * *

The first rays of dawn were stretching across the landscape as Bobo made his way back to his car from the ridge.

After dismissing the other men, the leader of the Revenants had stayed atop the ridge, watching the town as one by one the lights in the houses flickered out as their occupants fell into sleep, unaware that they were being watched, planned for.

Most of the night had passed in deep contemplation. The cogs in his brain turning as he plotted and schemed. Visualising his plans for the town in front of him with a glee that manifested as a smirk, pulling at his thin lips.

His assurances to Red and the other gang members that his absence was not going to be permanent had not been entirely true. When Bobo had left Purgatory all those years ago, following Willa when she went to college he had vowed to never set foot in the town’s borders again. The town he had called home for so much of his life had never held any place in his heart, and he would have been more than content to run the gang from afar, putting Purgatory out of his mind for good.

But something had drawn him back.

Revenge.

His discovery of Wyatt Earp’s alleged fortune had been too good an opportunity to pass up, Bobo hadn’t been wrong in his assumption that most members of the Revenants were primarily motivated by money. It was the reason many of them had turned to the gang in the first place, to earn easy money, that and indulge the darker sides of their personalities to their hearts content. Finding the long-forgotten fortune would provide funds the gang needed to fund the various schemes that Bobo had planned, and allow the gang members to indulge in their debauchery for years to come. Bobo didn’t care what they did with it, as long as it kept them in line, following him without question.

The fact that this money belonged to the Earp’s had been a stroke of good fortune that Bobo had not counted on, but one that had filled him with a giddiness that he hadn’t felt in years.

The time had come to return to Purgatory and fulfil the promise he had made all those years ago.

The promise to destroy the Earp family.

By the time his car was pulling into the high street the sun had fully risen, and the town with it. Shop doors were flung wide open, inviting customers inside, people stopped on the streets to chat with friends and neighbours, no doubt making small talk about the weather, plans for the weekend, their pets.

Bobo had always liked watching people, he found it entertaining to observe the moments that people allowed themselves when they thought no one else was looking, the ones where the carefully crafted masks that people painstakingly applied in the mornings before they faced the world slipped, exposing the raw, true face beneath. Whether that true face be sad, happy, angry or something else, seeing it, he found, revealed the true nature of a person, and when you knew that nature, you knew their weakness.

It was as he was parking his car in the shadowed alley behind the building he had been staying in since arriving back in town that he saw them.

He spotted Waverly first, the youngest Earp had a million-watt smile on her face and somehow managed to greet every single person she passed as she made her way up the sidewalk towards Shorty’s. Each person got their own smile, warm, genuine and so very Waverly that it almost made Bobo want to gag.

But none of these smiles were anything compared to the one she gave _her_.

Officer Nicole Haught.

Bobo would never admit it out loud but the young officer had surprised him, a feat not achieved by many. Most of the police force was still comprised of officer’s he had known from his teenage years and all had learnt (mostly the hard way) to give him a wide berth. Very few were willing to go up against him, especially given the rumours that he knew were rampant in the town about him.

So it had taken him quite by surprise when Nicole had stood up to him, it had been a long time since someone had actually threatened him with arrest. The defiance in the tall officer’s eyes, so unlike the looks he was used to receiving had been an almost welcome change, because if there was one thing that Bobo del Rey relished, it was a challenge.

It had been obvious to Bobo the moment that he mentioned Waverly Earp’s name that he had found the woman’s weakness, the flash of emotion, so brief that others might have missed it. the tightening of her muscles as she stepped forward, ready to defend the honour of the town sweetheart. The look in her eyes told him enough, this was a woman who would walk through fire for Waverly.

It was useful information.

From his position in the alleyway Bobo had a clear view of both Waverly and Nicole as they approached one another, he could tell immediately that the officer was nervous, her hands flexing rapidly by her sides, as if she was resisting the urge to reach out and touch the younger woman. Waverly too looked a little hesitant, but the smile on her face was brighter than he had ever seen it (not that Waverly smiled much around him anyway).

They were too far away for Bobo to hear what they were saying, but he was good at reading body language, and what he was seeing interested him greatly.

He had assumed that Officer Haught’s affection for Waverly was unrequited, but in yet another stroke of good fortune for the gangster it would appear that this was not the case, Waverly most _definitely_ returned the cop’s feelings, quite strongly if the shy grin on her face was anything to go by.

Bobo could fell his smile getting wider as the two women bid their goodbyes and headed off their separate ways, each casting lingering glances over their shoulder when the other wasn’t looking.

This was too perfect.

The seeds of the idea that had been growing in his mind since he had met Nicole were now blooming into a fully formed plan, one that would make his revenge on the Earp family all the sweeter, all the more devastating.

Perhaps coming back to Purgatory wouldn’t be so bad after all.

* * *

“You were out all night.”

His wife’s words came, not as accusation or question, but a simple statement. Much like she would present the facts of a case in court. From her place on the sofa she didn’t even glance up as he closed the front door to the small flat that he had been staying in since Wynonna had kicked him out.

“I had things to take care of.” He replied casually, flopping down next to her. Willa grunted in response, her eyes fixed on the book in her lap.

“All go smoothly?”

“Better than I had imagined.” Bobo grinned as he thought over the exchange he had witnessed downstairs.

For a moment, he considered sharing his new discovery with his wife, after all it did involve her little sister.

As entertaining as it would to watch that particular family exchange, Bobo decided to keep the information to himself.

Let Waverly and her cop have their secret romance, the time would come.

“That’s good.” Now Willa looked up, her face softening slightly as she reached out to brush a strand of hair out of his eyes, catching her hand he pressed a kiss to the palm of her hand. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too.” He purred, tugging the book out of her hands he shifted his body so he was lying half on her chest. Releasing a soft giggle, she snuggled closer to him, fingers carding softly through his hair.

Bobo del Rey hid a lot from his wife, there were times he felt their relationship was more lies than truth and there was a small part of him that almost felt guilty about what he had planned for her family, the guilt at what he had already done, the night she could never find out about.

But these thoughts never lasted long, not when he had a promise to keep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always let me know what you thought in the comments!


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I cannot apologise enough for how long this has taken. Life really got in the way the last four months and I feel really bad. But I wanted to thank you all so much for all your kind words and faith in my writing and to let you know that I am in no way giving up on this story at all. 
> 
> I'll stop talking now and let you enjoy the chapter!

In the days that followed her conversations with both Chrissy and Nicole, Waverly couldn’t help but feel lighter. It was as if she had spent that last few months walking around with a rock on her chest, one that only got heavier with every new worry that entered her head.

Speaking the words out loud had that rock evaporating, not entirely, but enough that she felt like she could breathe again, not suffocated by the weight of her changing world. It was liberating and such a relief that there were times when she laughed out loud.

Her behaviour confused Wynonna greatly.

Things were by no means fully back to normal, she doubted they would ever be. Her life would never be the same again and Waverly was still trying to work out if that prospect scared her, or thrilled her.

She suspected it was a mixture of both.

Her friendship with Chrissy had never been stronger, it seemed that her best friend had decided to tackle the issue of not knowing about the struggles Waverly had been going through by devoting as much time as possible making Waverly talk about everything she had been feeling. In detail.

It had led to some interesting conversations.

Waverly had initially been a little embarrassed about opening up about such private things (namely her night with Nicole), but she soon realised that their discussions were no different to the ones they used to have about Champ, although with far less ridicule.

Chrissy’s emotional support meant more to Waverly than she could express, especially as she had yet to tell Wynonna. It wasn’t that Waverly wanted to lie to her sister, there was no one else that she was closer to, but it seemed that every time she got the guts to open her mouth and tell her everything something would stop her.

That something was usually Willa.

If there was one person that Waverly was completely sure that she was _not_ going to tell, it was Willa. Her eldest sister was not exactly the most tactful of people and whilst Waverly was sure that Willa wasn’t homophobic she didn’t trust her with something this big, especially when she was still figuring it out herself.

That and Waverly was pretty sure Willa expected her to take Champ back any day now. Apparently, her sister didn’t think she deserved any better than Champ the Chump.

There had been a few thinly veiled jabs, ones that Waverly tried hard not to force herself to react to, usually helped by a pointed look from Wynonna. The middle Earp was doing everything she could to abide by the uneasy truce the sisters had agreed upon two weeks earlier.

Tensions in the house had subsided, and whilst they had not disappeared completely, even Waverly had to admit that it was now much easier for the three of them to be in the house together. Comments about Champ aside Willa had been trying to be more attentive, more open and Waverly was doing her best to reciprocate.

If Willa could do it, she could to.

Wynonna had really stepped up, heading off arguments before they could develop and being more proactive than Waverly could ever remember her being. It was clear that whatever work Wynonna was doing with Dolls was having a positive effect on her.

Waverly hated to admit it, but having Willa home obviously put Wynonna more at ease, and made her realise just how much Wynonna had missed their eldest sister when she was away, how much having their small fractured family together really meant to her.

Waverly’s guilt at not realising this before had yet to go away, in spite of assurances from Wynonna that it wasn’t her fault.

Despite the lightened atmosphere in the homestead there was still one topic guaranteed to cause friction between the sisters.

Bobo.

Waverly and Wynonna were of one mind; Bobo was not coming back to the house.

Willa believed otherwise, that, as her husband she had every right to have Bobo visit her. Her belligerence on the subject had caused more than a few raised voices and doors slammed slightly harder than necessary.

But it didn’t matter how hard Willa scowled, or what argument she carefully worded, Wynonna would not be moved. It meant that Willa spent more than a few nights away from the homestead, staying wherever Bobo had set up.

She didn’t know if it was because of the tension that these conversations had caused, but it seemed to Waverly that she was noticing Bobo a lot more around town. After his arrival to town and Wynonna had kicked him out Bobo had seemingly made himself scare, rarely venturing into town.

In the last couple of weeks however, Waverly had seen him with increasing regularity. It seemed that wherever she went, there he was. He had taken to hanging out more in Shorty’s, a development that irked Gus no end. She had made a move to throw him out the first time he had shown up for a drink, but had been stopped by a hurried head shake from Shorty. Barring Bobo would be more trouble than it was worth, and the bartender didn’t need that aggravation in his bar.

Waverly could just about tolerate Bobo’s presence, after all he had been around enough in her childhood that now she could almost ignore him. But what made her uneasy was the staring.

It seemed whenever Bobo was around and Waverly turned around his eyes were fixed firmly on her, unlike most people when he was caught staring he never diverted his gaze. Rather, he would hold her eye, as if silently challenging her, daring her to call him out.

The staring on its own wasn’t what left Waverly feeling uneasy, she was more than used to being stared at by men for longer than was polite. No, the staring she could handle, but it was the expression on Bobo’s face that sent a shiver crawling up her spine. The half-smile, lifting the left corner of his mouth, one eyebrow arched and a glint in his eyes that always meant bad news.

It was a look Waverly had seen often enough in her childhood.

It was the look he had worn before he’d told her she wasn’t on Earp. The look he had worn every time he and Willa bullied her.

Waverly had always thought of it as Bobo’s punch line look. Like he was revelling in a particularly funny joke that only he knew the punchline to.

She didn’t want to know the joke, she doubted anything that amused Bobo that much boded well for anybody else.

Waverly tried not to dwell too much on Bobo’s creepier than usual behaviour, she had plenty of other things to keep her mind occupied. The research for her fellowship project had become incredibly time consuming with Waverly reading a new book practically every couple of days. The subtle hints from Professor Harrison about reading the fruits of her research had only served to remind her that she needed to start putting pen to paper soon. That she needed to focus her mind completely on her work with no distractions.

This was easier said than done.

As hard as Waverly tried to focus on her research there was one thing that managed to distract her without fail.

Nicole.

It’s rather challenging to be friends with someone you’ve seen naked.

The thought struck Waverly in the middle of a daydream, a daydream that happened to be about a certain police officer.

A certain police officer naked.

The two of them had reached a somewhat uneasy level of friendship since their discussion in the diner. It wasn’t that there was any animosity between them that made it uneasy, far from it, but rather that neither Waverly nor Nicole really knew how to act around one another.

Waverly for her part was still trying to come to terms with the fact that her and Nicole had slept together. To cope with this her brain had done what it always did when she was faced with a problem.

Compartmentalise. Logically.

Essentially, in her mind Nicole had become two separate people; Nicole the friend, and Nicole the lover.

Nicole the friend was the woman Waverly had gotten to know in the last few moments, the police officer, the woman who had sat and listened on multiple occasions to Waverly babbling about her fellowship, the woman who smiled at Waverly like she was the most important thing in the world, who blushed a beautiful shade of red whenever Waverly complimented her and had become a cherished friend in the short time they had known one another.

Nicole the lover was a mystery, a fantasy, responsible for an explosive night of passion unlike anything Waverly had ever experienced before. Nicole the lover was a woman whose fingers had blazed over every inch of her body, her lips bringing her more please than she could remember having. The woman who had listened and read the signs of Waverly’s body like it was her favourite book, whose smile had been more of a smirk, sexy and seductive, pulling her deeper into her fantasy.

Nicole the lover was an unknown entity, one who when thought of never failed to prompt a surge of arousal to pool low in Waverly’s stomach, something that despite her stern talks with herself was happening more and more frequently.

These two distinct personas that Waverly had created in her mind were helpful in allowing her to sort through her own feelings about their night together. However, they didn’t help when she was trying to focus on her research, not on how amazing Nicole looked naked.

Much like she was imagining now, when she was supposed to be reading.

With a stern shake of her head Waverly forced herself to concentrate. She had a shift at the bar in a few hours and had wanted to make a large dent in her assigned reading before then.

Thoughts of Nicole would have to wait until later. Until she was alone. At home.

* * *

Wynonna Earp was not known for her patience.

It had been a recurring theme in all of her school reports: _Wynonna is a bright girl with a considerable intelligence. However, she lacks the patience to realise her full potential._

Being patient had always been Waverly’s thing, Wynonna had always much preferred learning by doing, and all the mistakes that come with that particular learning curve. And there had been a _lot_ of mistakes. Countless nights in cells and countless days she wished she could forget.

The decisions of her past weighed heavily on the middle Earp’s shoulders, the burden lessened somewhat by the drinking, but never enough to remove it completely. Sooner or later she always sobered up, and then it all crashed back down, somehow heavier than before.

Sometimes she just considered never sobering up.

Those dark thoughts came more often than she would have liked, but thankfully, never stayed long, at least not now. Because, now, Wynonna had a light, a light that chased away the darkness, pulling her back from the edge of the abyss.

Waverly.

Her younger sister was the reason Wynonna got up in the morning, she was the reason that occasionally when she reached for the bottle she hesitated, reaching instead for water. She was the reason Wynonna plastered a fake smile on her face at the bar where she worked reining in the urge to slam her seedy customers faces into the bar. She was the reason Wynonna wasn’t rotting in some prison cell, or lying nameless in a ditch.

In short Waverly was the centre of her world.

Wynonna knew she didn’t tell Waverly enough, didn’t show her enough just how much her little sister did for her. The years she had been away from Purgatory had strained their relationship somewhat, but the last couple of years had gone a long way to fixing the gulf between them.

Willa’s return hadn’t helped.

Even years later Wynonna never fully understood exactly what kinds of things had transpired between her two sisters, but she knew that it was bad enough to leave Waverly in tears on more than several occasions. She also knew that she hadn’t done enough to shield Waverly from Willa and Bobo’s cruelty, sure she had always defended the youngest Earp, but it was always after the fact, after the damage had been done.

Wynonna knew this was because of her desire to be closer to Willa, to try and keep their fractured family together, that she had overlooked Willa’s actions even now, because she had missed her eldest sister, because she had wanted them to be together.

Now they were all grownups Wynonna had hoped that some of the animosity of their childhood would have faded. But it appeared that the old wounds ran deep and although the three sisters had reached a more cordial understanding in recent weeks Wynonna could still sense the tension that bubbled between her two sisters.

To help belay some of this tension Wynonna found himself playing a role that was incredibly unfamiliar to her.

Peacekeeper.

She was used to starting fights, not preventing them.

It seemed that Willa could not resist the occasional snide comment that she knew would elicit a reaction in Waverly, who for her part, was unable not to react in some way.

As much as she loved her older sister and had missed her whilst she’d been away she couldn’t help the surges of anger whenever she saw Willa smirk at Waverly, especially in their discussions about her husband.

She had never fully forgiven Willa for marrying Bobo.

Wynonna tried not to think too much about her sister’s creepy husband, preferring to try and keep buried some of the darker memories his return had dredged up. Memories of things that Wynonna was not proud of, things she never wanted to see the light of day, lest Waverly find out.

Luckily her work at the bar and her new responsibilities with Dolls kept her busy, something she wasn’t used to being, so she was able to, for the most park, avoid Bobo.

It was her work with Dolls that found her currently lamenting her lack of patience.

“You know I hate it when you drink coffee in my car.”

Dolls’ disappointed muttering pulled Wynonna from her thoughts about her sisters and Bobo. Shooting her partner (a term he refused to acknowledge) a glare she took an exaggerated gulp of her coffee, wincing as the boiling liquid scalded the roof of her mouth.

“Well if let me drink it in the coffee shop with the cute barista like I’d suggested then I wouldn’t have to drink it in your car whilst we sit here looking creepy as hell.” She huffed, words coming out slightly slurred as she gently probed the throbbing flesh of the roof of her mouth with her tongue.

Dolls clenched his jaw so tightly that Wynonna could almost hear his teeth creaking at the strain. Although whether this reaction was to her continued drinking of her coffee or the comment about the cute barista she didn’t know.

Taking another tentative sip, she turned her gaze back to the dive bar they were sat in front of. 

“How much longer do we have to stay here?”

“Until we have what we need.” Dolls exhaled his answer through gritted teeth.

“Ugghhh.” Wynonna slumped further down in her seat, slurping coffee loudly, noting with some satisfaction the wince the action caused to ripple across Dolls face. “You know when you said I should work with you, I naturally assumed there would be a _bit_ more action than this. I mean you are part of a secret government organisation, you guys should be kicking butt more.”

“We prefer to put emphasis on the ‘secret’ aspect of our work.” Dolls replied tersely.

“Boring more like.”

“This was _your_ lead.” Dolls pointed out.

When Dolls had first broached the idea of her working with him they had been in bed, the sweat still cooling on their skin. At the time, Wynonna had assumed that he was joking, the post coital haze in her brain prompting her to laugh loudly.

It was then that she remembered that Dolls never joked about anything, she wasn’t sure he even knew how to laugh.

At first, she dismissed his idea, working with the police being incredibly low on her list of ideal jobs. Her mistrust of law enforcement stretched back to her teens when Purgatory’s finest had always been in content to simply throw in a cell whenever they encountered each other, regardless as to whether or not she was at fault.

Dolls had persisted, impressing on her how helpful her old contacts could be. He would never say it, but she knew that he desperately needed the help. His investigations so far had won him no friends, the evidence of this in the frosty interactions he had with Nedley daily and the argument with Officer Haught all those weeks ago. She knew he still felt guilty about that and was working to make amends but there was only so much trust small town police were prepared to grant government officers.

Eventually she had agreed, if anyone had asked she would insist that she had done so to get him to shut up, for the abundance of doughnuts she was promised and the potential to punch someone. But the reason she barely admitted to herself was the smile that had been directed her way when she was accepted was enough to make her feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Wynonna didn’t do warm and fuzzy unless it was because of whisky.

That was how they had ended up here, outside a dingy bar on the outskirts of town. One of the friendlier gang members that Wynonna had known from her teenage years was known to frequent the bar and they were waiting for him to emerge so they could have a word.

Wynonna had been perfectly content to go and wait _inside_ the bar, but Dolls had quashed that idea before it had even fully formed. The last thing he needed was Wynonna in a bar surrounded by gang members and alcohol. The thought of the amount of paperwork that could rack up was enough to make him shudder.

The pair had lapsed into a comfortable silence, broken only by Wynonna’s continued slurping of her coffee, when the door to the bar was flung open and their target emerged, stumbling slightly over his feet.

“That’s our cue.” Dolls muttered.

Exiting the vehicle, they made their way across the road, coming to a stop a few feet away from the inebriated man who was slumped against the side of a beat-up car, peering intently at a set of keys in his hands.

“I really hope you aren’t planning on driving that.” The man’s bleary eyes snapped up at the sound of Dolls voice.

“What’s it to you?” he mumbled. “You a cop?”

“Something like that.” Dolls glanced at Wynonna, who took a step forward, bringing himself into the man’s clearly limited field of vision.

“Hey Fish, long time no see.”

The man, Fish, squinted at her, confusion clouding his features before recognition dawned and he let out a loud laugh.

“Wynonna Earp! Working with the police. Pinch me I must be dreaming, or drunker than I thought.”

“It’s more of a consultant position.” Wynonna replied with a shrug. “We need to talk to you Fish.”

“About what?” the man’s eyes sparked with wariness as he stood up straighter against his car.

“The Revenants.”

At Wynonna’s response Fish appeared to sober up instantly, his eyes widened, fear flashing in his irises.

“What do you want to talk to me about that for? I don’t know anything!” the shrillness in his voice made it obvious he was lying. “I can’t help you.”

“I know you can Fish.” Wynonna replied taking a step forward. “You always talked about joining them back when we were kids.”

“I said a lot of things when we were kids.” Fish retorted. “Doesn’t mean I did it.”

Wynonna cocked her head to one side. “You still with Levi? Last I heard he ran with them.”

Fish eyed her warily. “I don’t get why you’re coming to me about this. You’d know more about this than me.” He narrowed his eyes. “If the things I’ve heard are true.”

“They’re not.” Wynonna replied sharply, ignoring the quizzical look Dolls shot her. Striding forward Wynonna placed herself firmly in Fish’s personal space. “Come on, it’s just a few questions.”

“I really don’t know anything.” Fish seemed to wilt under her gaze. “They don’t tell me anything.”

“But something is happening?” Dolls pressed.

Fish looked between the Marshall and Wynonna, mistrust evident in his eyes.

“You know what’ll happen to me if anyone finds out I spoke to you? What’d happen to Levi?”

“Answer our questions and no one needs to know we were here.” Dolls spoke steadily. “Otherwise…”

“Hey!” Wynonna turned to glare at him as Fish visibly paled. “Nobody will find out you’ve spoken us, _regardless_ of whether or not you answer the questions.” Looking back to Fish she softened her expression. “We’ve known each other for a long time, just help us out with this. Think of it as you paying me back for the time I saved your ass from those thugs.”

Wynonna waited as Fish debated, the expressions flitting across his face denoting his internal struggle.

“I honestly don’t know what they’re planning.” He said finally, reluctance heavy in his tone. “I’ve not been with them long, they don’t really trust me with anything. I’m a lookout most of the time!”

“Anything you can tell us will be helpful.” Wynonna’s voice was uncharacteristically kind, her usual snark gone.

Fish thought hard. “Whatever it is, it’s a recent thing. The other guys were pretty lazy up until a couple of months ago, just petty stuff you know, nothing big. But now something’s got them riled up.”

“Bobo’s return?” Dolls and Wynonna shared a look. It was assumed that Bobo was the leader of the Revenants, although it had never been proved, but his arrival and the gang members renewed vigour was too much of a coincidence.

“I guess so.” Fish shrugged. “Levi mentioned they had a meeting, but he couldn’t tell me what it was about. Only that it’s going to be big.”

Dolls let out a breath, clearly frustrated at the little amount of information Fish was able to provide them with.

“We appreciated your help.” Wynonna spoke over her partner. “Take care of yourself Fish.” Turning she began to head back to the car.

“You’ll be careful, won’t you?” Fish called after her. “A lot of the guys still hold grudges against your family. Now that Bobo’s back, it might give some of them the confidence to act on them.”

“Don’t you worry about me Fish!” Wynonna shot him her trademark smirk over her shoulder. “I can handle a few wannabe thugs no problem.”

“Do NOT drive that car.” Dolls warned Fish as he followed Wynonna to the SUV, prompting Fish to hurriedly stuff his keys into his pocket and move away from his car, vanishing into the night.

“Well that was useless.” Dolls huffed as he slumped behind the wheel.

“We learnt that they’re planning something.”

“With no idea when, what or who it involves…OWW!” Dolls rubbed his arm where Wynonna had just punched him. “What was that for?!”

“For being so negative. AND…” Wynonna levelled a finger at him. “for threatening Fish that way.”

“He wasn’t telling us anything!”

“That didn’t mean you had to threaten to throw him to the wolves.”

Dolls sighed heavily. “You wanted to see the more covert side of Black Badge, it involves more than just punching. There are tough decisions.”

“Well that wasn’t one of them. Fish is a good guy.”

“A good guy who runs with a gang of thugs, the same thugs who probably killed your father.” Dolls responded with an arched eyebrow.

“I’m aware of that.” Wynonna growled. “But Fish isn’t a bad guy. He's just a guy who had a messed-up childhood, made some bad choices and now can’t see a way back.”

There was a darkness to her tone, a shadow in her eyes that made Dolls pause, recalling something Fish had said.

“What did he mean when he said you’d know more about what we were asking than him? What rumours was he talking about?”

Wynonna’s scowl intensified. “They’re nothing.” When Dolls raised his eyebrows, she huffed. “Like I said, messed up kids making bad decisions. Now drop it.”

As much as Dolls wanted to probe further, the look on Wynonna’s face warned him off.

“Right, well we should get out of here. The last thing I want is to get into a confrontation with a bunch of drunk gang members.”

“You scared of a little fight Dolls?” Wynonna smirked, the darkness in her eyes gone. “Don’t worry, I’d protect you, fight them off.”

“That’s what I’m worried about.” Dolls muttered as he pulled the SUV out onto the main road heading back to Purgatory.

* * *

Chrissy Nedley had been Waverly Earp’s best friends since they were four years old. They had spent their childhoods running round the homestead and the Sherriff’s office, and their teenage years huddled on each other’s beds, giggling late into the night about boys, their futures and anything else they could think of.

Chrissy loved Waverly more than anyone else in the world, with the exception of her father. Thinks Waverly is the smartest person she had ever met.

Except right now.

Right now, Chrissy was convinced that Waverly was the _densest_ she had ever met.

The sheriff’s daughter had been watching Waverly trying, and failing _not_ to look at Officer Haughtstuff (Wynonna’s nickname was hilarious) for the past hour.

Officer Haught wasn’t faring much better.

So far, Chrissy had watched Waverly clean the same glass five times, gaze fixed on a spot approximately three feet to the left of Nicole’s head, eyes darting to the table left of Nicole’s head, eyes darting to the table where Nicole and a couple of her cup buddies sat.

She had then watched as Waverly ‘cleaned’ the bar top (wiping the rag across the same patch of wood whilst pretending that she wasn’t not so slyly watching Nicole).

Nicole’s attempts at subtlety were just as tragic, the woman had pretended to stretch so many times since she had sat down that Chrissy was tempted to offer her the number of a chiropractor just to see the look on her face.

Of course, both of the idiots were sneaking glances when the other _wasn’t_ looking.

It was equal parts frustrating and downright hilarious to watch.

Chrissy understood Waverly’s reluctance, of course she did. Nicole had messed up, badly. It was only right that Waverly was cautious, she had been hurt.

Nobody hurt her friend and got away with it, Champ was a prime example of this philosophy, he’d walked with a limp for a week the first time he made Waverly cry. It hadn’t stopped him doing it again, but he had flinched every time he had seen Chrissy for six months.

Chrissy had yet to get physically violent with Nicole (not that the thought hadn’t briefly crossed her mind), but she had been sure to give the officer a glare so ferocious the first time she saw her after Waverly had told her that Nicole had visibly wilted, and she was keeping a very close eye on the officer.

It had become obvious fairly quickly to Chrissy that Nicole was hopelessly and irrevocably head over heels for Waverly, and the more she watched the other woman the more Chrissy became convinced that (unlike some other people) Nicole had never meant to hurt Waverly and she was truly regretful about what had happened.

That didn’t mean she fully forgave her though.

It was clear that Nicole’s attraction to Waverly was, absolutely reciprocated (case in point being the events of the last hour). Ever since Waverly had admitted in the pizzeria what had happened between her and Nicole, Chrissy had watched the two of them bumble through more awkward, sexually charged encounters than she could keep track of.

It was beyond infuriating.

Taking a swig of her wine Chrissy watched as Waverly crossed the bar to the table where the officers were laughing rowdily at something that Nicole had said, leaning over to take the empty glasses. Nicole’s eyes fixed on Waverly, hand rising in a half gesture as if to reach out and touch her, chickening out at the last minute and diverting her attention back to the other occupants of the table. Chrissy rolled her eyes and grunted in frustration, resisting the urge to slap her palm into her face when, as soon as Nicole’s gaze was back on the table Waverly looked shyly at the officer, hand coming up in almost the exact same gesture.

It was then that Nicole looked up and treated Waverly to a large, dimpled grin.

Which promptly left Waverly speechless.

“Oh my god.” Chrissy muttered as her best friend retreated back behind the bar, a blush furiously colouring her cheeks.

As if sensing she was being watched Waverly looked up, brow furrowing in confusion as she took in Chrissy’s expression.

“What’s that look for?” Waverly demanded as she approached Chrissy’s table. “You only look at me that way when you think I’m doing something stupid.”

“You are.” Chrissy replied bluntly.

“What am I doing?”

Chrissy raised her eyebrows, jerking her head in the direction of the officer’s table, where Nicole was scratching the back of her neck, trying to look like she wasn’t sneaking glances at Waverly out of the corner of her eye.

“I don’t get it. Why are you looking at Nicole?” Chrissy resisted the urge to thump her forehead against the table as Waverly frowned again, looking between her and the police officer.

“When are you going to admit that you like her and want nothing more than to screw her brains out?”

Waverly spluttered at the words, choking on air and drawing the attention of most of the people in the bar, including Nicole, who looked like she was ready to rise out of her seat and rush to Waverly’s aid.

“Chrissy!” Waverly hissed when she was finally able to breathe again.

“What, it’s a perfectly valid question?”

“Nicole and I are just friends,” Waverly insisted, teeth gritted in an expression that Chrissy had seen many times over the years. It was the expression Waverly wore when she was trying to convince herself of something she knew wasn’t true. It had been worn many times during her relationship with Champ.

“How often do you have to tell yourself that?” Chrissy smirked when Waverly scowled, that sentence was probably playing on repeat in the brunette’s head right now.

“It’s complicated!” Waverly protested.

“I’m not saying it isn’t.” Chrissy replied soothingly. “And I’m not saying you don’t have a right to be angry, what she did was wrong, she hurt you and that’s not ok. No one has your back more than me when you get hurt, but as your best friend I also need to protect you against yourself. Because…” she held up a hand to put a halt to Waverly’s protests. “…we’ve talked about that night, how it made you feel and Nicole in general quite a bit over the past few weeks, and you get this glint in your eye every time she’s mentioned, your voice goes a little softer. Every time you try and hide it, but I’ve never seen you look that way before. And I’m sorry but you don’t talk and look like that about someone you’re still that angry at.”

Waverly’s shoulders slumped as she ran a hand through her hair, another sure sign she was nervous.

“I don’t know what to do.”

“It’s obvious!”

“Pardon?” Waverly blinked at Chrissy’s blunt response.

“You go over there and tell her you like her.” Chrissy placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Because, if I have to watch you two idiots fumble through one more awkward, sex tension filled conversation, so help me God I will tell her myself.

Waverly blanched. “You wouldn’t?!”

“I would too.” Chrissy retorted. “I know you’re scared Waverly, and this isn’t an easy situation. But that girl is crazy about you, and she is a good person. Unlike _some_ people I could mention.”

“I know.” Waverly sighed, clearly deep in thought. “I’ll think about it.”

Chrissy didn’t get a chance to reply because Waverly was already moving, called back to the bar by an impatient customer. Sighing heavily Chrissy took a thoughtful sip of her wine. It appeared Waverly and Nicole were as hesitant as each other, both too wary to make a move.

All they needed was a catalyst, something to push them together. To make _something_ happen.

This catalyst arrived _much_ sooner than Chrissy expected.

Unfortunately, it came in the form of Rachel Mahoney.

* * *

Chrissy’s words were still fresh in Waverly’s mind twenty minutes later, circling round and round as she tried to figure out what to do when they were rudely interrupted by the unmistakable, arrogant drawl of Rachel Mahoney.

“Glass of white.”

Waverly gritted her teeth at the lack of politeness in the request.

“Of course.” False sincerity dripping from her reply Waverly filled a glass as quickly as she could, desperate to keep contact with Rachel at a minimum.

“Here you go.” Waverly slid the glass over the bar, hand outstretched to accept the money. Rachel didn’t even glance her way, dropping a couple of bills onto the counter. Waverly’s teeth were clenched together so hard her jaw was beginning to ache.

“You’re welcome.” She muttered under her breath as Rachel moved away from the bar.

Waverly saw the exact moment that Rachel caught sight of Nicole, she saw it in the straightening of her old classmate’s back, the predatory glint that entered her eyes as she placed her phone down on the table before sliding gracefully off her stool and making a beeline for the jukebox where Nicole was choosing a song.

Waverly wanted to go and intervene, but she was stuck, pulling six beers for the group of builders that had traipsed through the door only moments before, loud and demanding.

She could only watch as Rachel approached Nicole from behind, the officer completely oblivious to her presence, willing the beer to fill the glass faster.

Waverly didn’t know why Rachel was so interested in Nicole, before now her schoolmate had never exhibited any attraction towards women, but Waverly knew better than most how little that meant, and how swiftly it could change. She also suspected that if Rachel did harbour those kinds of attractions she was clearly much more comfortable in herself about them than Waverly was. This evident in the way she was flirting with Nicole that very second, eyes bright, smile coy and hands caressing Nicole’s arms with the softest, but most suggestive of touches. Waverly would be lying if she said she wasn’t, she turned into a spluttering bashful mess whenever Nicole so much as blinked in her direction.

“Whoa! Waverly! That’s enough beer girl!”

Jolted away from watching Nicole and Rachel by the exasperated shout of one of the patrons Waverly glanced down, swearing softly under her breath as the glass in her hand overflowed, beer dripping off her arm and onto the floor.

“Sorry.” She muttered, flicking the excess away and placing the very full glass on the counter. Receiving only a grunt in reply as the man took his beer carefully and retreated to a table, Waverly was left free to turn her attention back to the couple by the jukebox.

They were still there, Nicole leant against it with one hip, arms crossed over her chest and the smile that Waverly adored on her face. She was out of her uniform, clad in a flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up bearing her forearms, and a pair of faded blue jeans. It was a style Waverly loved and she didn’t blame Rachel for looking at Nicole the way she was (well not much).

Nicole laughed at something Rachel said, throwing her head back, eyes sparkling in a way that made Waverly go weak a little weak at the knees. This sensation was accompanied by a surprisingly potent surge of jealously that boiled heavily in her stomach. She wanted to be the one making Nicole laugh like that, not Rachel.

_As a friend, you want to make her laugh as a friend._

The little voice that helped her compartmentalise the different facets of her relationships with Nicole piped up, eager to be heard.

_Oh, who are you kidding?! You want to be more than friends._

The _other_ voice, the one that Waverly had been trying not to listen to, (that now for some reason sounded like Chrissy), butted in smugly.

Hearing the words, spoken aloud by her best friend, were much more difficult to debunk as lies than when she protested in her own head. She knew she wasn’t ready to enter into a relationship with anyone, but it was getting harder and harder to deny that what she felt Nicole was platonic.

Seeing Rachel with Nicole was only hammering this point home further.

* * *

It was like watching the moments before a car crash, Chrissy pondered as she watched Rachel flirting with Nicole, knowing that something is about to happen, able to identify the exact moment that sets two people on a collision course.

In this case, the exact moment was Nicole throwing her head back, laughing heartily, even as Rachel smirked, hand creeping up Nicole’s forearm.

Chrissy could practically hear the jealousy that was bubbling up inside of Waverly, could see the tightening of her best friend’s jaw, hands clenching at her sides.

Chrissy was sure of it. Waverly was about to do something stupid.

Like confront Rachel.

Chrissy was nothing if not a good friend, and although she knew Waverly would be angry for what she was about to do, she was certain that she would thank her in the long run.

Rising from her chair Chrissy swept across the room and tapped on the wood of the counter top, drawing the attention of Shorty who had just emerged from the back room where he had been hiding all day.

“Hey Shorty.” Chrissy spoke loud enough that she knew she could be heard by most of the people in the room, including Waverly, Rachel and Nicole. “You know what we haven’t done for a while?”

Shorty sent her a questioning look even as Waverly appeared to steel herself and began to march in the direction of Rachel and Nicole.

“We haven’t heard Waverly sing.”

Waverly stopped dead, eyes widening and swivelling towards Chrissy in disbelief.

It wasn’t that Waverly disliked singing, on the contrary she loved it. But belting out songs along with the radio in the privacy of her bedroom with Chrissy as her only audience was _very_ different to singing in a bar full of people. Shorty and Gus had coaxed her into doing it a few times in Shorty’s, where it had gone down a treat, but it often took a lot of coaxing for Waverly to agree.

Shorty’s eyes lit up at Chrissy’s words even as Waverly vehemently shook her head.

“She’s right! Waverly, sing us a song!”

“Oh no, really I don’t…”

“I insist, it’s been so long since we heard you. Please, indulge me.” Shorty made it sound like a request, but was already guiding Waverly over to the old piano. Everyone in the bar was watching, exactly what Chrissy had been banking on.

“I am going to kill you.” Waverly hissed as Shorty pulled her past Chrissy.

“You’ll thank me for this.” Chrissy replied with a wink.

Shorty pushed Waverly onto the piano stool, hands gentle on her shoulders. “Sing that one you know I like.” He prompted when Waverly hesitated.

“Shorty I’m not…”

“Please.” Chrissy watched with a sly smirk as Waverly’s resolve crumpled, she could never say no to Shorty, placing her hands hesitantly on the keys. “Sing that one, you know my favourite one.”

Waverly hesitated again, knowing exactly which song he was talking about, eyes flitting to Nicole who was watching their exchange out of the corner of her eye, Rachel still talking animatedly.

Chrissy watched as Waverly debated with herself internally for a few seconds before heaving a sigh of defeat. Looking back down at the keys she took another deep breath.

Then she started to play.

* * *

Every single coherent thought fell out of Nicole’s head the moment Waverly’s hands touched the piano.

She had of course been aware of Waverly’s presence, as she always was, but up until that point had been determined to remain a respectable distance. Mindful of Waverly’s need for space and the promise she had made to herself that she would be Waverly’s friend, would respect the pace the other girl set.

No matter how hard it was.

The last few weeks Nicole had been determined to show Waverly that she could be trusted, that she deserved to be in her life, whether that be in a romantic or platonic role (although she knew which one she would have preferred). It had been strange, adjusting to their new dynamic, now that Waverly knew the truth and Nicole would be lying if she didn’t admit that there were times when they just didn’t know how to act round one another. They were trapped, caught between being friends, and teetering on the edge of something more.

It was agonising, but for Waverly Nicole was ready to endure far worse.

That didn’t mean she was a little above a little self-preservation.

Nicole was acutely aware that whenever she was around Waverly she turned into a hot, gay mess. Her brain seemed to function sluggishly, as if weighed down by treacle.

If Nicole gave into what her heart wanted she would spend every second with her eyes fixed on Waverly’s every movement, on every minute change in her expression, every lilt of her voice and twitch of her hands, committing them all to her memory forever.

In an attempt to combat this Nicole tried to keep a distance of a few feet at all times between her and Waverly. Tried to keep her eyes off of the bartender who dominated so much of her thoughts.

It worked with varying degrees of success.

Rachel’s appearance had been somewhat of a surprise. The woman’s interest in Nicole made her feel a little uncomfortable, unused to such intense attention. Rachel looked at her like she was an obstacle, something to be conquered.

“We never did go for that drink.” Rachel pouted ten minutes into their conversation.

“No, sorry. I’ve been busy.” Nicole thumbed through the tracks on the jukebox, dimly aware that Chrissy was speaking to Shorty. Upon hearing Waverly’s name the officer’s ears perked up subconsciously, body turning slightly to see the bar out of the corner of her eye.

Rachel continued talking as Shorty ushered Waverly over to the piano, blissfully unaware that she had lost most of Nicole’s concentration. Nicole for her part was barely paying attention to the endless triad of thinly veiled innuendos the brunette was spouting.

When the first notes drifted from the piano the last vestiges of Nicole’s self-control vanished, she gave herself in completely to the desire to stare unabashedly at Waverly, ignoring Rachel completely.

It didn’t make that much difference, nobody in the bar was speaking. All eyes were fixed on Waverly as she started to sing.

_I just can’t seem to help myself,_

_I wear my heart for all to see_

_Maybe you’re that someone else_

_Another hopeless case like me_

Nicole was fairly certain her heart skipped a beat as Waverly sang the first few bars. Her jaw went slack and in the back of her mind she knew that she probably looked foolish and love-struck, but she didn’t care, all her brain could focus on was the angelic sound of Waverly’s singing.

Nicole loved Waverly’s speaking voice. She loved all its little inflections, the mass of emotion that it denoted. Excitement, determination, frustration, elation, desire. Like everything else about her, Waverly’s voice was an expression of the vibrant, brilliant personality that bubbled inside the petite body of the youngest Earp.

Waverly’s singing voice, however, seemed almost ethereal. Like something one might hear in a dream, unique and almost impossible. Nicole felt like she was hearing again for the first time.

The piano was angled so Waverly sat side on to the bar, meaning Nicole could only see her profile. The younger woman’s eyes had drifted closed, her expression relaxed and smooth as she gave herself over to the music, it was an expression that Nicole hadn’t seen on Waverly before and she quickly filed it away as one of her favourite, and one she knew she needed to see more of.

_The one who always falls in love to fast_

_The one who thinks that this time love will last_

_Falling, falling_

_I can’t keep myself from falling_

_Follow, follow_

_Follow me down, down, down, down, down_

Nicole had to remind herself to breathe, as Waverly took breath of her own, launching into the second verse. Tilting her head Waverly’s eyes drifted open again, catching Nicole in their beauty. She hadn’t even realised that she had shifted so she was in Waverly’s line of sight.

_It hits me hardest when you smile,_

_A little bit of sadness round your eyes_

_It says I might hold you for a while_

_But I will love you all my life_

Waverly’s gaze flickered to hers somewhere during the verse and Nicole is pretty sure she is rooted to the spot, unable to move even if she wanted to. Waverly’s eyes are shining brightly, bottomless and enchanting she didn’t think it was possible but Nicole could feel herself falling harder for the brunette.

The rest of the song passed in somewhat of a blur, the rest of the world fading away until the only thing she was aware of was Waverly. It was only when the music stopped and a light smattering of clapping sounded round the bar that Nicole was jerked back to reality.

Waverly was blushing furiously as she rose from the piano stool, Shorty clapped her on the shoulder, beaming broadly. Chrissy Nedley stood nearby, looking oddly proud of herself.

The fog in Nicole’s brain was struggling to clear, her eyes still fixed on Waverly who was whispering furiously to a snickering Chrissy. The Sheriff’s daughter seemed unperturbed by Waverly’s annoyance, laughing before walking away, leaving Waverly standing by herself, lips quirked dangerously close to a pout.

Nicole continued to watch as Waverly runs a hand through her hair, releasing a deep breath before disappearing through a door that Nicole knows leads to a store room at the back of the bar.

She shouldn’t follow her.

Nicole’s whole plan revolved around giving Waverly space, so the last thing she should do is follow Waverly into the store room. She should stay here, listen to Rachel who had started to talk _again_. She should…

“Will you excuse me?” cutting Rachel off in the middle of a very suggestive sentence about Nicole coming back to her place.

“Sure.” Rachel looked surprised, as if unaccustomed to being cut off, or rejected. Nicole mumbled a quick apology and walked as fast as she dared through the door after Waverly.

Unaware that two sets of eyes watched her as she went. One pair of wide, slightly smug, more excited eyes. The other, narrowed in suspicion.

* * *

As nervous as she got singing in public, Waverly couldn’t deny that it gave her quite a rush. Her heart was beating slightly in her faster than normal, hands shaking minutely and a light headed feeling that was actually quite pleasant.

Forcing her hands to still she swiped up the clipboard that Short had left balanced on one of the crates, busying herself with stock take.

She could have killed Chrissy for putting her on the spot like that, her best friend knew that she hated surprises and singing in front of groups of people of people. Waverly had told her as much after the song had finished. Chrissy had claimed that Waverly should _thank_ her of all things, that she had stopped Waverly from doing something incredibly stupid.

Like confronting Rachel about flirting with Nicole, because she was jealous.

Waverly had tried to protest that hadn’t been her plan, that she was capable of being subtle.

That had just made Chrissy laugh harder.

“The singing did something right though.”

“And what was that?” Waverly forced out through clenched teeth.

“Officer Haughtstuff couldn’t take her eyes off you.”

She had walked away before Waverly could retort.

She had noticed, of course she had noticed. It was why she was in this room, sorting through boxes that had already been sorted.

She had seen the look on Nicole’s face, seen the unwavering devotion in her eyes.

It had made Waverly feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Waverly heard soft footfalls in the corridor outside the store room, her heart sped up a little, realising who it was before her brain did.

Turning Waverly couldn’t help the smile that quirked at her lips as she saw Nicole leaning in the doorway, hands stuffed awkwardly in her pockets.

“Hey, sorry I didn’t mean to disturb you. I just wanted to…I’ll go.”

“No! Wait!” Waverly blurted out as Nicole turned to leave. The taller woman moved into the room, stopping within three feet of Waverly.

“So, I didn’t know you could sing that well. Your voice is beautiful.” Nicole said a few moments later, left hand coming up to scratch the back of her neck.

“I mean I’m ok I guess.” Waverly muttered.

“Ok? You were phenomenal!”

Nicole’s words caused a flaming blush to spread across Waverly’s cheeks. “Thank you.” Now she was the one awkwardly rubbing her neck.

“You’re welcome.”

The silence that descended was one that was becoming familiar to them, both having things they wanted to say, but knowing it wasn’t the time. That neither of them were ready.

“So, Rachel really has taken a shine to you.” Waverly broke the silence and immediately regretted the words, she could not have sounded pettier if she tried.

“Yeah, she’s uh, an interesting woman.” Nicole chuckled.

“Creepy more like.” Waverly mumbled, causing Nicole’s chuckle to turn into a full-bodied laugh.

“You’re not jealous are you Waverly Earp?”

“Me? Jealous?” Waverly clasped a hand over her chest. “Now where would you get an idea like that?”

“I’m a police officer, we work off hunches.” Nicole replied with an arched eyebrow.

“You might want to get yours checked out.” Waverly scoffed, moving a step forward, aware now that there was barely a foot between them. “It’s a little off.”

“Oh, I don’t think so.” Nicole’s voice had dropped an octave, taking on the low pitch that always caused a pull in the pit of Waverly’s stomach.

“So what if I was jealous?” Waverly responded softly, eyes flickering from Nicole’s down to her lips, this was the first time she had tried to admit it out and whilst terrifying, there was also an exhilarating rush to it, not unlike the one she had experienced from singing.

“I’d tell you, you have nothing to be jealous of. I don’t see anyone else, especially when they sing the way you do. God Waverly, you have no idea what you do to me.”

Waverly’s breath hitched in her throat.

She knew that this was a bad idea, knew that they should keep distance between them, even though with each passing second, they were getting closer and closer.

Nicole’s tongue swept along her lower lip, the motion captivating. Waverly knew what she was about to do, the rational voice screaming at her to back away, to take herself out of the situation, that this would only serve to complicate things further.

It screamed at her even as she surged up to meet Nicole’s waiting lips.

All excess noises faded away as Waverly focused solely on the softness of Nicole’s mouth against her own. The kiss was demanding, insistent and everything that Waverly had been dreaming about since the last time she had kissed Nicole. Her hands slid up the other woman’s chest, parting the top of her shirt to run her fingers over smooth collarbones. Fisting the lapel of Nicole’s shirt in her hands she tugged sharply, pressing herself fully against Nicole’s firm body, delighting in the gasp it elicited from the taller woman.

Nicole’s fingers curled against Waverly’s hips at the gesture, moaning softly when Waverly took the lead once more, biting down on Nicole’s lower lip. She seemed happy to allow Waverly to set the pace, mouth opening willingly as Waverly’s tongue traced the seam of her lips.

Waverly pressed forward, forcing Nicole to step back. Their mouths parted briefly when Nicole’s back slammed into a crate, a low moan echoing round the small room.

“Waverly!” Nicole groaned as Waverly took the opportunity to explore her jawline, teeth scraping sensitive flesh, hands dropping to Nicole’s waist, slipping beneath the fabric, nails brushing against warm skin.

It seemed Nicole couldn’t stand for their lips to be parted for long, because it was only a few seconds later that insistent hands were directing Waverly’s face back to her own, breaking her way from her exploration of the other woman’s skin before they had really begun.

Not that Waverly was complaining.

This was a terrible idea, she should stop now. This was not in her plan.

But as Nicole’s hands cupped her jaw, deepening the kiss still further, Waverly found that she didn’t give damn about her plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always kudos and comments are greatly appreciated and again I'm so sorry that it has taken this long to update and I appreciate people sticking with me through this! I promise it won't be as long before the next one, I'm hoping to have a new chapter up before the new series airs.
> 
> Edit: completely forgot to mention that the song used in this chapter is 'Falling sung by Clare Bowen in Nashville. A beautiful song that always reminded me of Wayhaught and I really wanted to be able to work it in somewhere.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I shouldn't make promises that I can't keep, I really meant to have a new chapter up by the time the new series premiered, but apparently life had other plans for me. SO instead of a new chapter for the beginning of a new season, how about a new chapter for the announcement of a new season?! (So excited for that, well done Earper's!!) 
> 
> I was honestly overwhelmed by the response to the last chapter, I was worried after a four month wait people might have gone off this story but you guys made me so happy with all of your kind words and encouragement. When I have some free time this weekend I will go back and respond to the comments on the last chapter, you guys are amazing and I love you all. 
> 
> For now please enjoy this chapter.

It could have been seconds since Waverly’s lips had touched hers, it could have been hours. All notion of time had become irrelevant to Nicole, determined instead to take as much from this moment as she could, not prepared to take any of it for granted.

Kissing Waverly was so much better than she remembered.

The younger woman’s hands were clasped firmly around her waist, fingers digging fiercely into Nicole’s back through her shirt. Her tongue was demanding, stroking over Nicole’s boldly. There was a new confidence about Waverly that set every nerve in Nicole’s body tingling with excitement, causing her to melt into her touch, allow Waverly to lead the way.

Waverly pulled back from the kiss a moment later, and Nicole would have been embarrassed at the whine that left her throat at the loss of the contact had she not been so utterly focused on how beautiful Waverly looked. Lips swollen, eyes wide and chest heaving, hands still gripping Nicole’s waist.

For a moment, they just stared at each other, their harsh pants echoing round the silent space. Nicole wanted to speak, say one of the hundreds of thoughts that were swirling round in her head, but she found words impossible, unable to do anything other than cup Waverly’s face once more, bringing their lips together.

The groan Waverly let slip into her mouth sent a shiver rippling down Nicole’s spine.

This kiss was softer, more deliberate, all urgency from the first kiss had melted away, replaced by a tenderness that had Nicole’s heart swelling in her chest, threatening to burst out.

Of course, it couldn’t last.

A loud bang in the corridor shocked them apart. Waverly sprang back as if burnt, Nicole’s head recoiling back in alarm, thudding painfully into the wall.

“Fuck!” the curse outside the door echoed Nicole’s current train of thought as pain coursed through the back of her skull, whilst also revealing the identity of the intruder.

Wynonna.

Waverly rolled her eyes, mouthing ‘of course’ before stepping back into Nicole’s personal space, fingers sliding to massage the back of her scalp. Nicole but her lip to keep in the moan that threatened at Waverly’s ministrations, ducking her head to chase the smaller girl’s lips.

Their mouths were a hair breadths apart when Wynonna’s voice sounded again, much closer this time.

“Waverly! Where are you? I need to talk to you!”

Waverly gave a low groan, eyes closing and head falling forward in defeat, forehead pressing against Nicole’s.

“I’ll be right out Wy!” pulling back, face morphed into a regretful pout Waverly ran a hand through her hair in an effort to tame it.

“I’ll wait for you at the bar. Hurry!” the sound of Wynonna’s footsteps retreating faded until the two of them were left in silence again.

“I should go and see what she wants before she comes back.” Waverly mumbled just as the silence threatened to become deafening.

“Yeah.” Was the only response Nicole could think of, her brain having trouble processing the events of the last few minutes.

Waverly half turned as if to leave when she paused, before Nicole could so much as blink Waverly was in front of her, lips pressed gently against her own, hands cupping her cheeks.

The kiss was short, sweet and definitely over too soon.

“Waverly, what does this mean?” Nicole couldn’t help but ask the question she knew she shouldn’t as they parted. The one that would break this perfect little bubble.

“I don’t know.” Waverly sighed, thumbs brushing against Nicole’s cheekbones before withdrawing. “I…” trailing off Waverly cast a helpless look Nicole’s way. “I should go.”

Nicole didn’t stop her as she walked out of the room, despite every cell in her body screaming for her to speak up.

* * *

The next day brought with it heavy rain, starting in the early hours of the morning, continuing all day and accompanied by a cold wind that blew in from the north.

Bobo sat, leant back in his chair, watching the rain as it pounded against the window pane. It was late afternoon, but it might as well have been the dead of the night for all the visibility the rain afforded.

Across the desk Levi fidgeted, unable to keep his hands still, but terrified of making any noise that would disturb Bobo from his deep thought. They had been say this way for over half an hour now, deathly silence penetrated only by the rain on the window and the ticking of an old clock that sat on Bobo’s desk.

“You look nervous Levi.” Bobo’s soft tone seemed impossibly loud in the silent room. Levi started at the sound, teeth biting down on the hangnail he had been worrying. He couldn’t hold in a sharp wince as blood welled up in the site of the torn flesh.

“I’m not nervous.” Speaking round his finger, Levi saw Bobo’s eyebrow quirk at his response.

“Of course not.” Bobo’s voice carried the hint of a chuckle, as if he were placating a child. “It’s my understanding that you are unhappy with you position in my organisation?”

Levi’s heart began to beat faster, fear pulsing through him with each beat. It was true that he had complained about his position in the gang to Fish and a couple of the other guys one night in the bar, he craved more responsibility, to seen as an equal, not the runt he knew many thought of him as.

Cursing his inability to keep his mouth shut after a few drinks Levi searched frantically for an answer that would satisfy Bobo, very aware that the eyebrow that was arching higher the more he stuttered.

“It’s not that I’m unhappy Bobo.” Hating how weak his voice sounded Levi cleared his throat. “I just feel a little…” he paused to search for the right word. “…side-lined.”

Bobo leant forward, the two front legs of his chair falling back down to the floor with a loud crack.

“How long have you been with us?”

“Uh, about three years.” Levi replied, trying to keep his voice from wavering under Bobo’s intense stare.

“I see.” Bobo said slowly, stroking his chin, appearing deep in thought. “And you think you’re ready for a more…expanded role?”

 

Levi nodded. “I’m ready boss. I can handle it.” he hoped his voice sounded stronger than it felt.

“That remains to be seen.” Bobo laced his fingers together. “As it happens, there is something I could use your help with.”

Levi leant forward in his chair, eagerness slipping into his tone before he could stop it. “Whatever it is, you can count on me.”

Bobo made a small noise in the back of his throat, lips lifting in his trademark smirk.

Levi was about to open his mouth to plead his case further when there was a knock at the door.

“Come.” Bobo called out, not taking his eyes off Levi. The door swung open and the sound of heavy footsteps echoed round the room. “Ah Red, right on time!” Bobo diverted his gaze to the newcomer, Levi, turning his head at the same time, eyes landing on the tall man who stood a few feet away from his chair.

Levi didn’t like Red. The man was brutal, cruel, even for a Revenant. His hands were soaked in more blood than perhaps anyone else in the gang. He loved torturing people, both physically and mentally, and he was often Bobo’s go to man when there was something particularly nasty that needed to be done.

Whatever Bobo wanted done, if Red was involved it was pretty certain that it would not be nice. Levi began to doubt his resolve but knew he couldn’t back out now.

The smirk on Bobo’s face made Levi think that the other man could see into his thoughts, see his indecision.

“You rang boss?”

“Yes.” Bobo leant back in his chair, pulling open a drawer in his desk. “I have a job for you.” His gaze flashed back to Levi. “Both of you.”

Red looked at Levi as if only just realising he was there. “You want me to work with _him_?”

“Problem?” Bobo tilted his head to the side.

Red seemed to remember who he was speaking to and immediately schooled his features into a more contrite expression. “No problem boss. Just checking.”

“Good.” Bobo nodded. “Now. I’m sure you both remember what I told you about the Earp land at our meeting.”

“The buried treasure, yes I remember.” Red’s tone was dancing the thin line between respectful and mocking. Levi could tell by the small twitch in Bobo’s jaw that it had not gone unnoticed and he held his breath, waiting to see Bobo’s reaction.

There wasn’t one. Bobo appearing to let it go, but Levi knew that he wouldn’t forget it. Red had just earned himself a black mark against his name, and you only got so many before Bobo acted.

“The money yes, I have been doing some research and have located a book that will help us locate the money.”

Red’s lips twitched in a slight sneer. “A book?”

“A book.” Bobo repeated. “A book that needs to be…liberated.”

“You want me to steal a book?” Red crossed his arms over his chest.

“I want both of you to steal a book.” Bobo glanced between Red and Levi.

“With all due respect sir.” Red said. “But it would be quicker, and easier if I just did this by myself.” The contemptuous glance he sent Levi’s way showing how little he thought of him.

“This is not a request.” Bobo’s tone had taken on a hard edge, one that had both men across from him straightening their spines. “You will _both_ retrieve the book and bring it to me.” He held both their gazes until Red bowed his head a fraction, enough of a sign of submission.

“So where is the book?” Was Red’s next question.

“The university.” Bobo replied, opening a drawer in his desk he removed a sheet of paper and slid it across the table. “Specifically, in the history department.

Red looked up from the paper, a photo of an old leather-bound book roughly the size of a journal. “So, does that mean it’s with…”

“Yes.”

Bobo’s acknowledgment caused a slow smirk to spread across Red’s face. Levi looked between the two men, not following what had made Red so happy.

“It’s with who?” he asked quietly.

Bobo turned his eyes on him, irises flashing with a barely restrained glee. “The book is currently in the possession of one Waverly Earp.”

* * *

Dusk had long since fallen over Purgatory, the blackness of the night had crept in, bringing with it a light fog that shrouded the university in an almost mythical cover.

Waverly had always loved the fog, loved the fantastical atmosphere it created. When she was a child she had spent long nights lying awake when the fog rolled in, scaring herself by conjuring images of demons and monsters hiding in its depths, relishing the shivers that ran down her spine as her active imagination worked in over time.

Tonight, however, Waverly could only conjure a mild apathy toward the fog she could see curling around the window, in the rare moments she looked up from her computer screen. The rain had dissipated a couple of hours earlier, leaving the fog to take its place.

The history department had been empty for hours, silent save for the sounds of Waverly’s fingers on the keys of her computer and the soft hum of the cleaner’s vacuum outside in the corridor. The quiet was a welcome reprieve, Waverly had been trying all day to find some peace and quiet.

The early shift at Shorty’s had been surprisingly bust, with no fewer than four construction crews all coming in for breakfast. She had hoped for an easy shift so she could catch up on some reading, but it seemed that everyone in her life was choosing that day to be as needy as possible. Every customer she served watched one more thing whenever she finished, Gus and Shorty were both too busy with a delivery gone wrong, pleading with Waverly to handle the unusual breakfast rush, leaving her dealing with a bar full of rowdy patrons.

Next, she had tried the homestead, sure that there she would find a quiet spot to do her work. As far as she was aware Willa was in town with Bobo and Wynonna was out with Dolls, doing whatever it was that covert operatives did.

However, her hopes at a quiet afternoon were dashed before she had even stepped through the front door. Wynonna and Willa’s argument could be heard from the yard. Two voices competing to drown each other out, the words pretty much unintelligible.

Cracking open the front door Waverly had found her sisters standing opposite one another, fists clenched at their sides. Willa’s face was red, her eyebrows knotted together in a fierce frown. Wynonna’s expression was slightly calmer, but her eyes flashed dangerously.

It was obvious what they were fighting about, the same thing that caused most of the tension between Willa and Wynonna.

Bobo.

Waverly didn’t hang around long enough to find out what had triggered this argument, or for it to reach her. Willa had a habit of blaming Waverly for Wynonna’s sour view of her husband. Leaving the two elder sisters to their bellowing Waverly had retreated to the safety of her jeep, ready to head to the one place she stood a chance of getting some quiet.

She had been sat in her tiny officer ever since then, working in silence as the rain had poured outside before being replaced by the fog.

The time alone had only been interrupted once, by a weary looking Doc. Leaning heavily in her doorway after back to back classes he’d invited Waverly for a drink, smiling knowingly when her grunted decline was followed by a hasty apology. He’d left with the warning not to work too late, to which she had replied she wouldn’t. They both knew she was lying.

Sparing a glance at the clock Waverly was surprised when she saw that it was almost eleven. The hours seemed to have melted away and as she leant back in her chair she couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride as she took in the pages of scrawled notes that covered her desk.

There was something oddly cathartic about seeing the products of her research and her own workings physically on paper in her own writing. Her eyes hurt, her fingers were cramped but the sense of accomplishment outweighed any discomfort.

Her isolated afternoon had not only allowed her to get on with her work, but had afforded her the opportunity to contemplate the other issue that had been plaguing her thoughts since the previous evening.

The kiss.

It was funny that the one person she had wanted to see had been curiously absent that day.

It had never been far from the forefront of her mind, lingering in the background, playing over and over again whenever she allowed herself a moments break in concentration.

She felt conflicted. On the one hand, she had enjoyed the kiss immensely, it was still a marvel to her how soft Nicole’s lips felt, how well they fit against her own, the fire that the simple touch ignited inside her. She would be lying if she said that she hadn’t wanted to kiss the officer from the second she saw her hovering nervously in the door. Lying if she said that the song Shorty had convinced her to sing hadn’t been sung with Nicole in mind, eyes unconsciously finding her in the crowd of the bar. Lying if she said that even the very thought of Nicole didn’t send a thrill through her blood.

But there was the other side too. Waverly wasn’t sure if she was ready to move forward with whatever was happening with Nicole, it was abundantly clear that they were more than friends, stuck just beyond the line of friendship, but not quite close enough to the next step.

It wasn’t even a matter of forgiveness, Waverly knew she had forgiven Nicole for a while now. She didn’t like holding onto grudges, onto negative energy. It was the reason she had forgiven her father, Willa and even Wynonna time and time again when they had let her down, beaten her down and left her. She could forgive, but Waverly didn’t know if she could trust so easily. Didn’t know if she was brave enough to put her heart back on the line, trust Nicole with her rapidly developing feelings.

Waverly knew she couldn’t kid herself, she had been falling for a long time.

What she lacked was the courage.

Twirling her pen round in her hand Waverly let out a wistful sigh, wondering not for the first-time what life would be like if she were as bold as Willa, as fearless as Wynonna. She could only imagine how the last few months would have played out if she had the courage she so desired.

She wouldn’t have run away that morning, that fateful morning when everything had changed. She would have stayed, she would have faced her fear, her uncertainty and all the questions that she still didn’t have answers to.

She’d have been there when Nicole awoke, seen that smile she had grown so fond of, sleepy and content, brown eyes softening as Nicole realised that Waverly was still there, that she had stayed.

Maybe they would have carried on from the previous evenings activities, learning about each other’s bodies in the light of day, heads clearer. Nicole coaching her through returning the favour with all of the compassion and tenderness she had shown the night before.

Maybe they would have just talked, learning about each other’s minds. Waverly allowing herself a momentary panic, understandably, at the situation she had found herself in, but Nicole would have talked her down. Speaking in soft soothing tones as she made them breakfast.

Maybe they would have parted at the door with a chaste kiss, Nicole shyly asking Waverly if she wanted to go for coffee the next day. Waverly shyly agreeing before heading home, trying and failing to keep the spring out of her step.

Maybe that coffee would have turned into dinner, and that dinner marking the first of many dates. The start of hand holding, kisses on the porch of the homestead at the end of an evening, cuddles on the sofa and lunch dates.

Maybe they could have had all that and so much more.

Waverly huffed out another sigh, chuckling at her own sentimentality. She had not allowed herself many opportunities to daydream about the past, about what could have been. She had done enough of that in her childhood, wishing for things to be different with Willa, wishing Wynonna would come back, that her father had drank less, that her mother hadn’t gotten cancer. All the time spent wishing had changed nothing, so Waverly had learnt to look forward, focus on what was coming, not on what had already been.

Stifling back a yawn Waverly chanced another glance at the clock, the late hour and the weariness she could feel creeping into her limbs convincing her that it was time to call it a night. Her movements were sluggish as she moved to collect her papers, yawning so wide that she felt her jaw pop.

It was as she was gathering up the last of her papers that her fingers slipped, sending everything in her hands tumbling to the floor.

“Shit.” Dropping to her knees she shuffled the papers, trying to get them into a manageable pile. Her movements stilled as her hands covered two thin volumes that had been hiding in the papers. One of the books had fallen open and she examined the page curiously as she rose to her feet.

Unaware that she was being watched.

* * *

“When we’re in there, you do everything I tell you.” Red’s voice cut through the fog and darkness, his tone patronising and short. The two men had been standing outside the window to Waverly’s office for almost an hour, hidden from view by the dense bushes that grew around the back of the history building.

Levi nodded at his words, not trusting himself to speak. He felt sick, when he had said he wanted more responsibility he hadn’t counted on this. He wasn’t stupid, he knew what the gang did, but there was a big difference between talking about it in a bar over a beer and actually standing outside a window, preparing to rob an unarmed, defenceless girl.

That coupled with the fact he was having to do this with Red, an unpredictable psychopath with a hatred for the Earp’s that outstripped most of their fellow members and Levi couldn’t help but feel that this was a terrible idea.

“Get ready to go in.” Red spoke again as Waverly straightened up in front of the window, two thin books in her hand and a puzzled frown on her face.

“We’re not going to hurt her, are we?” Levi finally found his voice. “Bobo said she wasn’t to be hurt.”

Red turned to him, eyes flashing in the darkness. “Bobo isn’t here.” He growled, fist rising as if to strike the smaller man, but then he stopped, arm lowering and the malice in his expression fading into a devious smirk. “Besides,” turning away from Levi he headed away from the window, round the side of the building, “accidents happen.”

* * *

Waverly’s eyes darted across the page, taking in the small script hat was commonplace in all the older books she had read. The book open in her hands was the history of the Ghost River Triangle gangs, written around the time that Wyatt Earp had been operating in the area. Waverly had skimmed most of the book when she had first received it, picking out a few choice pieces of information for Dolls and his work, but since then she hadn’t given it much thought. There had been so much else going on, so many other books and papers to read that she had almost forgotten about it.

The page in front of her was not one she remembered reading, near the middle of the book the page was taken up by drawings of tattoos, inked in black and red. The writing accompanying them stated that the tattoos were a mark of accomplishment, given only to those who had proved themselves loyal to the gang.

The Revenants.

Waverly’s frown deepened as she shifted her attention to the second volume, it was the book on land ownership she had used for the beginnings of her research, back when she had been building her profile of Wyatt Earp, including what land he had held. Flicking through the slim volume she paused at the page she had marked for further research. The print was small and she squinted to read a note scrawled at the bottom of the page that she hadn’t noticed before, she had been more interested in the listing of assets on the page above, not on what she had assumed was a note from the author.

The words ‘great wealth’ were the only ones she was able to pick out with any ease, the note was in a messy hand, not the neater writing that ran through the rest of the book. She thought another one of the words might have been ‘Earp’ but it was difficult to make out in the low bulb light in her office. Resolving to look into it further when she was back home Waverly made to put the two books and papers in her bag.

A noise out in the corridor made her pause.

It was an old building and Waverly had spent a few nights working late, so she was used to the noises it made when everyone had left. But this noise had sounded different, a loud thump.

Like a body hitting the floor.

Her heart beat a little bit faster, placing the papers and books on the desk she moved slowly towards the door, a feeling of dread mounting with every step. Poking her head round the doorframe she looked both ways down the empty corridor.

“Andy?” calling out the cleaner’s name she waited for a response, hands growing clammy with every second that passed without reply. “You there?” edging out into the hallway she craned her ears for more sound, hearing nothing but the usual creaks and groans the building let out.

Reaching the turn in the corridor that lead towards Doc’s office Waverly peered around the corner, eyes widening as they fell on the figure crumpled on the floor halfway down the hallway. With a gasp she was running, falling to her knees next to the body she recognised as Andy the cleaner.

“Andy! Are you ok?” shaking his shoulder Waverly heaved a sigh of relief when he groaned softly, blinking groggily up at her.

“Wha…?”

“What happened?” she asked, levering him up to a sitting position.

“I’m not sure.” Andy grunted, massaging the bac his head. “Something hit me.” He inspected his fingers, checking for signs of blood.

“Was it a person?” Waverly looked around again, but the corridor was empty, no signs of movement.

“I don’t know.” Andy shifted so he was sitting with his back to the wall, breathing slightly laboured.

“I should call someone.” Waverly looked at him worriedly.

“There’s no need for that I’m fine.” He waved away her concern.

Waverly was about to open her mouth to protest, when a soft clatter from down the hallway caused her to pause. Looking back down the corridor, she listened intently, but there was silence.

It was as she was turning back to Andy that she heard another noise, a clattering followed by the unmistakable noise of a man talking.

The sound was coming from her office.

She cast a quizzical glance back at Andy, who shrugged, pushing himself to his feet so he was stood next to her. Together the two of them inched back down the hall, towards the rectangle of light that spilled out of her office door.

The sounds were getting louder and Waverly was now able to make out what was being said.

“Where is it?” the first voice was a growl, clearly agitated.

“She’s going to come back.” A second voice hissed, laced with fear and uncertainty.

“We will deal with her if she does.” The first voice replied.

“But we were told not to…”

“Just shut up and keep looking!” the second man lapsed into silence and the sounds of searching intensified.

Slipping her phone out of her pocket Waverly pulled up the keypad, ready to dial 911 as she risked a glance round the doorframe.

Two men stood in her office, one was tall, his lanky frame bent over one of her filing cabinets he was flinging papers out behind him. The other man was stood near her desk, nervously sifting through the papers strewn there. There was something familiar about him that looked familiar, with his greying hair and concerned expression, but Waverly couldn’t pinpoint how she knew him.

Waverly inched forward another step, wondering what on earth could be in her office that was worth breaking in and stealing. Glancing down at her phone she shifted position, ready to retreat and call the police.

That was when the floor creaked under her foot.

The man bent over the filing cabinet sprang up like he had touched a live wire, eyes snapping to the doorway. His receding hair was thin and when a wide smirk split his mouth she could see that his teeth were filed into sharp points.

Waverly tried to scramble backwards, away from him, but the man was on his feet and by the door in a flash, hand closing round her upper arm in a vice like grip.

“Well, well, well.” He chuckled, pulling her sharply into the room. “Look what we have here.”

Waverly didn’t reply, she couldn’t. the man had a good foot and a half on her in height and he towered over her, eyes flashing menacingly.

“Now that you’re here you can help us, I’m afraid we are having a little trouble locating something.” Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a photo of a book. “Where is the book?”

Waverly recognised the book instantly, it was the land ownership record she had been reading not five minutes beforehand. “I’ve never seen that book before in my life.” She managed to reply in a tone that only wobbled slightly.

The man’s face darkened and he removed his hand from her arm, before she could feel relieved the same hand had shot out again, grabbing her by the throat, lifting her clean off the floor and slamming her back against the nearest wall. All the breath was driven from her lungs and she gasped, trying to draw air in past her lips even as his hand gave an experimental squeeze.

“You see, I’m not a very patient man.” He spoke low, leaning in close. “Especially not when it comes to an Earp whore. So, I’m only going to ask you one more time.” He held up the photo, speaking low and threatening. “Where is the book?”

The other man, in the room seemed to have been struck dumb when his friend grabbed Waverly and only now sprang into action, jumping forward he latched onto the man’s left arm that held Waverly up against the wall.

“Red, this was not part of the plan!”

“Shut up Levi!” Red roared, turning to glare at the smaller one. The action gave Waverly a full view of a black and red tattoo that stretched down the right side of his face. She sucked in what little air she could in a gasp.

This man was a member of the Revenants.

Red had turned his attention back to her, expression set hard and furious. “Tell me where the book is Waverly.” The use of her name sent a cold shudder down her spine. And maybe I’ll leave your pretty face alone.” He shrugged. “Well not totally not alone.” The look in his eye told her the types of thoughts he was having and knowledge caused a sickness to bubble in her stomach.

Glancing to the left she caught sight of Andy huddled in the corridor, his phone pressed tightly to his face as he whispered quickly and urgently, as quietly as he could. Waverly felt a rush of relief that at least the police were on their way, not if only she could distract this man Red until they arrived…without him hurting her.

“I’m running out of patience.” Red flexed his fingers against her throat again, making breathing that little bit harder.

“I don’t know.” She wheezed.

“You’re lying.” Red hissed. Waverly shook her head, eyes flitting to the desk, when she knew the book lay, obscured by papers.

Unfortunately for her, Red noticed the gesture, his gaze shifted to the desk, a wicked grin spreading across his face. Jerking his head towards Levi he ordered. “Search it.”

The other man was quick to move, shooting nervous glances up at Red and Waverly as his trembling hands moved the papers aside. They soon found the two books and he held them up for Red to inspect.

“That one. Red nodded to the book on the left, before squinting at the title of second book. “Actually, take them both.”

Levi stowed the books away, lingering nervously as Red turned his attention back to Waverly.

“Now then, what to do with you?” he sneered. “I’m not supposed to hurt you, but,” he gave a chuckle that sent a chill down her spine, “I’ve never been all that good at following orders.”

Levi started forward, looking like he was about to interject again, but was stopped in his tracks by the sounds of sirens, approaching fast.

“We need to go!” Levi hissed when Red hesitated, eyes flicking between Waverly and the window next to her.

With a growl of frustration Red flung Waverly away from her, ignoring her cry of pain as se fell heavily against the desk. By the time she looked up, breath coming in sharp pants her two assailants disappeared out through the window, even as the police squad car screamed into the car park.

* * *

Nicole yawned loudly and rubbed her eyes, it was the beginning of the night shift, the time approaching midnight, but Nicole was already ready for her bed.

Usually she would have napped during the day, rising a few hours before her shift started to run her errands, arriving at work rested and ready to face whatever her shift would bring. However, she had not slept that day. Sat instead on her sofa, TV on unseen in the background, hands absentmindedly running through her cat’s fur. Her mind was not in her flat, her mind was back in the store room at Shorty’s the night before. With Waverly Earp.

Nicole had spent most of that time cursing her own apparent lack of self-control, following Waverly to the store room and practically pouncing on her had not been in her plan for respecting the pace and boundaries that Waverly wanted to set. Granted Waverly _had_ kissed her back, quite passionately if she were being honest.

As happy as Nicole was that the attraction between the two of them was still clearly there, she couldn’t help but worry that Waverly would see the incident in the store toom as a reason to distance herself from whatever they were. There had been no communication from Waverly and Nicole was determined to maintain some sense of self-control and not give into the temptation of calling or texting. She had pushed enough, it was not time to take a step back and do what she should have been doing, letting Waverly set the pace.

Nicole had arrived at her shift, resolving to follow through on this promise, and apologise to Waverly as soon as she got the chance, putting the kiss behind them.

That didn’t stop her from fantasizing about it.

She was pulled from one particular fantasy, by the ringing of the phone on her desk. Reluctantly bringing her thoughts back to the present she reached for the receiver.

“Officer Haught.”

The person on the other end of the line was speaking so quietly that for a moment Nicole wasn’t even sure there was someone there. “Hello?”

“You have to send someone.” A man’s voice, quivering with fear came stronger over the line. “You have to send someone now.”

“Sir, I need you to calm down and tell me where you are and what’s happening.” Nicole spoke calmly and firmly in an attempt to assuage his panic.

“I’m at the university, my name’s Andy, I’m a cleaner.” He was silent for a moment. “There are people here.”

“People have broken in?” Nicole clarified.

“Yes, they’re in one of the offices. They have someone in there.”

“A hostage?” Nicole sat up straighter. “Which department are you in?” there was a nagging question feeling that compelled her to ask the question. Waverly worked at the university.

“History.” The man replied, his voice barely above a whisper.

An icy chill gripped Nicole’s heart at the word, she worked hard to keep her voice even. “Andy, do you know who the intruders have there in with them?”

“Waverly Earp.”

Nicole swallowed hard, feeling as if the bottom had dropped out of her stomach. She was on her feet before she had realised what was happening.

“Andy, I need you to stay where you are. Officers are on their way.”

Marching through to the front of the station Nicole barked out the bare bones of the call to Paul who had been dozing at his desk. If he was surprised by the anxiousness in her tone, or the panic in her eyes he didn’t comment, merely followed her instructions without question.

The ride over to the university was the tensest of Nicole’s life, the sound of the siren wailing only just drowning out the pounding of her heart in her chest and the thoughts buzzing round in her skull like a horde of angry bees. Images of Waverly broken and bleeding, taken and hurt flashed before her eyes, tormenting her and causing the breath to catch her in her lungs. Taking a heavy breath, she forced herself not to think about how she might have lost her chance to tell Waverly all the things she wanted to say, knowing she needed to focus, Waverly needed her to focus on doing her job.

Paul sat beside her, talking to Andy who was still on the phone, reassuring him that help was on the way.

After what seemed like an age Nicole was pulling the squad car sharply into the parking lot at the university. Turning off the ignition she scrambled out of the car, Paul hot on her heels. Pulling her gun from its holster she flexed her finger around the grip, the sturdiness and familiarity of the weapon helping to settle her nerves. With Paul less than three feet behind her Nicole hurried up the steps to the building. A security guard was waiting at the top of the stairs, drawn by the sounds of the sirens.

“What’s happening?” he asked desperately, clearly panicked.

“You’ve had a break in.” Nicole told him shortly. “They have someone in there with them.”

“Oh God.” The man blanched, falling into step behind the officers they made their way into the building.

“Where is Waverly’s office?” Nicole asked in a hushed voice.

“First left.” The guard replied as they reached a fork in the corridor.

Regarding the corner Nicole noted the triangle of light halfway down the hallway and quickened her pace.

Approaching slowly Nicole took a deep breath, peering round the door frame she tensed, ready to raise her weapon if needs be.

Her hand dropped to her side as her eyes landed on Waverly on the floor, one hand clasped to her side, the other round the shoulders of a man dressed in a janitor’s outfit.

Forcing her vocal chords to work Nicole strode into the room. “Police.”

“Oh, thank God you’re here.” Andy cried out with relief. “They just went out the window.”

Nicole’s first instinct was to go to Waverly’s side, but the police officer in her screamed to check the scene, make sure they was no more danger.

“Call an ambulance.” She told the security guard over her shoulder as she moved towards the open window, gun raised. It was almost impossible to see anything in the rapidly thickening fog, but the area outside the window looked deserted. Whoever the intruders were they were long gone.

Turning away from the window, dropping immediately to Waverly’s side, hand shoving her gun back into its holster and then resting it gently on Waverly’s shoulder.

“Waverly.” She spoke lowly, not wanting to startle the younger woman. Waverly looked up at her words and Nicole swallowed down the fury that rose in her chest at the sight of the angry red marks that circled her throat. “What happened here?”

Waverly’s eyes were wider than normal, breath coming in soft pants. It took her a few moments to speak and when she finally managed her voice was hoarse, like sandpaper. “They were looking for a book.”

“A book?” Nicole repeated, eyes raking over the smaller woman’s form, checking for injuries. Waverly was still holding a hand to her left side and winced as she shifted. Deciding her questions could wait a couple of minutes Nicole spoke gently. “Can you move?” indicating the chair she took Waverly’s arm when she nodded.

When Waverly was settled Nicole crouched in front of her. Andy hovered nervously behind her.

“Thank you for your help.” Nicole spoke over her shoulder. “If you go and find my colleague they can take your statement.”

Andy looked torn, but at a nod from Waverly he conceded, backing towards the door.

“Are you ok?” Nicole asked the second he had disappeared, leaving them alone, allowing her calm façade to crack. Reaching up she tucked a strand of hair behind Waverly’s ear, fingers brushing against her cheek.

“I’ll be fine.” Waverly replied, leaning into the touch and clearing her throat with a small wince. “More shock than anything.”

“I’d still feel better if we got you checked out.” Nicole resisted the urge to touch the angry red marks on Waverly’s throat that would no doubt bruise.

“Are you up to telling me what happened?” Nicole asked a moment later when Waverly’s breathing had slowed and her eyes had reduced to a more normal size.

The younger woman nodded, taking a deep breath, she explained. “I was working late when I heard a noise out in the corridor. When I went to investigate I found Andy lying on the floor, I think they hit him to get me out of the office. He needs to see a paramedic.”

“We’ll make sure he gets checked out.” Nicole soothed her, indicating Waverly should continue as she took notes.

“We heard them in here so I came to see what they looked like. You know, so I could give an accurate description to the police.” Nicole couldn’t help but smile a little at that. It was such a Waverly thing to do.

“Go on.” She prompted.

“One of them saw me, the second one called him Red, he pulled me into the room and started demanding to know where this book was. When I wouldn’t tell him he held me up against the wall by my throat.”

“What did he look like?” Nicole laid a comforting hand over Waverly’s, forcing herself to ignore the spark in her chest when Waverly squeezed her hand back.

“Tall, going bald, his teeth were filed into points. And he had a tattoo.”

“What of?”

“It was red and black and stretched down the right of his face.” Waverly replied. “It means he’s part of the Revenants.”

“The Revenants, the gang?”

Waverly nodded. “Yes, him and his friend both are.”

“What can you tell me about the second man?”

“He was shorter, grey hair and called Levi. He seemed nervous, tried to stop Red from hurting me.”

Nicole scribbled notes fiercely. “What book were they after?”

Waverly frowned. “It was a small one about land ownership, I don’t understand what they would want with it. It’s just a bunch of numbers.”

“So, you have no idea why they were after it?” Nicole asked, a frown marring her features.

“No.” Waverly reached up and massaged her throat.

“We should get that checked out.” Nicole said, rising from a crouch to her feet.

“I’m fine really.” Waverly protested. “I just want to go home and sleep.”

“I will take you home myself,” Nicole promised, “ _after_ you have been seen by a paramedic.”

She grumbled but Waverly eventually conceded to being checked over and allowed Nicole to lead her to the paramedics, staying by her side as they gave her the quick once over. As well as the marks around her neck Waverly had a rapidly spreading bruise across her left-hand side from where she had been thrown against the desk.

She was given the all clear a few minutes later, allowed to go home under strict orders from the paramedics that she take it easy for the next few days.

“Paul I’m going to take Waverly home.” Nicole told her partner as she guided the younger woman out of the building.

“Sure thing Haught.” Paul nodded, shooting Waverly a comforting smile. “I’ll catch a lift back to the station.”

“Thanks.”

Neither Waverly nor Nicole spoke for the first few minutes of the ride home, both wanting to so badly to speak, but neither finding the courage.

“You’ll have to go down to the station tomorrow, give a proper statement.” Nicole said finally, unable to take the silence a second longer.  “If you feel up to it of course.”

“I’ll be there.” Waverly replied.

Nicole chanced a glance at her as they cleared the edge of town, out on the road to the homestead. Waverly was staring out the window, eyes unfocused and face half in shadow, the sight of her sombre face was enough to pull on Nicole's heart and without thinking she reached out and took one of Waverly’s hands.

The motion seemed to start Waverly out of her thoughts and for a second Nicole thought she had done the wrong thing, tensing her hand she started to pull it back, but Waverly clung on, keeping Nicole’s hand in her lap, gripping it like a lifeline.

“Are you ok?” Nicole asked a moment later, knowing it was a pretty ridiculous question but desperate not to let the suffocating silence descend again.

Waverly sighed. “I guess, I mean not really but I will be.” She turned to face Nicole as the officer turned the car into the homesteads yard. “Thank you so much for all you’ve done tonight.”

“I didn’t really do all that much.” Nicole blushed at the sincerity in Waverly’s eyes, shinning even in the darkness. “Just my job, and I wasn’t able to stop you getting hurt.” She dropped her head, anger at herself flaring in her chest as she thought again of what Waverly had been through that evening.

“Hey,” Waverly’s gentle voice and the accompanying squeeze to her hand forced Nicole to look up into kind eyes that caused her heart to skip a beat in her chest. “You being there, all strong and steady was more than enough. I immediately felt safe as soon as I saw you walk through the door.”

Her words warmed Nicole from the top of her fiery red hair to the tips of her toes. For the first time in two days she wasn’t thinking about the kiss in the store room, not thinking about the unresolved sexual tension or the regrets she had about the lies and upset of the last few months.

Because when Waverly Earp looked at her like that, spoke with that much conviction and certainty Nicole couldn’t feel anything other than warm.

“I should get inside.” Waverly looked to the house, breaking the spell that kept Nicole enraptured. “Wynonna will be doing her nut.”

She wasn’t wrong.

The middle Earp appeared in the doorway as Nicole escorted Waverly across the yard, one hand hovering protectively an inch or two from the small of Waverly’s back.

Wynonna's face held none of its usual smirk, instead her expression was set in a cold fury, jaw tense and mouth hard, but her eyes, her eyes were open and worried and Nicole could see immediately how close to breaking the older woman was.

“Waverly.” Her sister’s name fell from her lips in a relieved exhale, reaching forward she pulled Waverly into her arms, crushing her sister to her chest. “Dolls called me, said you’d been attacked!” guiding Waverly into the house she jerked her head at Nicole, indicating she should follow even as Nicole opened her mouth to make her excuses and leave.

Nicole didn’t argue.

Wynonna sat Waverly down at the table, eyes taking in the marks on her neck with a fury that Nicole was sure eclipsed even her own and actually sent a ripple of fear through Nicole’s spine.

Wynonna looked ready to murder.

“Who did this to you?” Wynonna growled, crouched in front of Waverly her hands grasping Waverly’s tightly. “Tell me who did this so I can kill them.”

“She doesn’t mean that.” Waverly shot a look at Nicole.

“Yes, I do.” Wynonna glared at Nicole, daring her to say something. Nicole deemed it prudent to keep her mouth shut. “Tell me who did it? What did they look like? What did they want?”

“They wanted a book.” Waverly replied, her voice weary. “I don’t know why, they were part of the Revenants. One was a big guy called Red with sharp teeth a tattoo on his face. The other was some guy called Levi.”

Wynonna went deathly still, her face frozen in an expression mixed between anger and shock.

“What is it?” Waverly leant forward, hand outstretched to touch against Wynonna’s arm. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Wynonna’s voice was hoarse and she shook her head, expression darkening further before she looked up. “I’m ok.”

Waverly didn’t look she looked like she believed Wynonna but her sister didn’t leave her room to argue before she bobbed down in front of Waverly again.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there to protect you.” Her words similar to Nicole’s own feelings of guilt in the car.

“Wynonna!” Waverly leant forward, cupping her sister’s face and staring intently at her. “There was nothing you could have done to protect me from this, there was nothing anyone could have done.” Pressing her forehead against Wynonna’s she closed her eyes and sighed heavily.

Nicole fidgeted on her feet, not sure whether she should be witnessing this clearly intimate moment between the sister’s. She was just about to leave them to it when Wynonna looked up, eyes meeting Nicole’s with a soft expression for the first time.

“Thank you, Nicole.” The rare use of her first name showing Nicole just how sincere Wynonna was.

“It’s no problem.” She replied. “Anytime.”

“You should err, stay for a drink.” Wynonna straightened up, a semblance of her usual cockiness coming back into her smile as she crossed to the counter to retrieve a half empty bottle of whisky.

“I’m actually still on duty I should go.” Nicole said regretfully, wishing with all her heart that she could stay.

“Are you sure?” Waverly looked up at her wide eyes and it took every ounce of Nicole’s willpower not to cave and do anything Waverly asked of her.

“Yes, I am, it’s late and the paramedics said you should go to bed as soon as you got in.”

“You hear that Waves? Think you’ve just been sent to your room.” Wynonna gave her sister’s shoulder a squeeze as she nursed a glass of alcohol. “Go on, I’ll come on up and tuck you in in a bit.”

“Shut up.” Waverly growled without menace at her sister, a smile playing at the edges of her mouth. “Let me show you out.” The next words were directed Nicole.

Nicole nodded and followed Waverly out into the hall, where they both stood nervously by the door.

“Well, I hope you’re feeling better tomorrow and when you feel up to it, come by the station and I’ll take your full statement.” Nicole felt herself slipping into officer mode, unsure how she was meant to act.

“Thank you again, for everything you have done tonight. Really, it means more than you know.” Waverly reached out and took Nicole’s hands, thumbs brushing against the skin.

“Anytime Waverly.” Nicole murmured, her voice low. “I mean it.”

“I know.” Waverly looked like she might say more, but it seemed that the fatigue had eventually overtaken her. Instead she leant forward, wrapping her arms round Nicole’s waist, hugging her tightly as she rested her head on Nicole’s chest.

Nicole’s heart stuttered so violently in her chest she was surprised that Waverly couldn’t feel it, but she reacted immediately, arms circling the smaller girl’s shoulders to hug her tightly.

The opening of the front door pushed them apart.

“Waverly!”

Willa’s voice almost sounded panicked and for a moment Waverly couldn’t believe that it was her eldest sister standing in the doorway, eyes wide and chest heaving as if she had been running.

“Are you ok?” Willa stepped forward, hands coming up to Waverly’s shoulders, grasping a little harder than gently.

“I’m ok Willa.” Waverly soothed, not sure what to do, she had never seen Willa like this. “Really.”

Willa looked her up and down, the panic fading in her eyes and her usual stoic expression slowly returning. Taking a step back she took a deep breath, as if to steady herself.

“When I heard, I didn’t know what to…” Willa trailed off when she caught sight of Nicole, as if only just noticing she was there. “Who are you?”

“Officer Haught.” Nicole replied, trying and failing to stop her tone from being clipped, not failing to remember that this was the sister who had made Waverly feel worthless, who had tormented her, bullied her, patronised her.

She was also married to Bobo. Nicole wouldn’t forget her first meeting with him in a hurry.

“And you’re here because?”

“I was just bringing Waverly home.”

“Nicole’s been great, she helped after the attack.” Waverly cut in, sensing the animosity that radiated between the two of them.

“Well thank you for bringing Waverly to her family. We can take it from here.” Willa said stiffly, pulling open the front door again and motioning with one hand.

“Just doing my job.” Nicole replied, just as stiffly before addressing Waverly in a softer tone. “I will see you tomorrow?”

“Of course.” Waverly nodded. “Thank you again.”

“Goodnight Waverly, goodnight ma’am.” Tipping her hat to both Earp’s Nicole strode out into the night.

* * *

In his office Bobo slowly picked up the books that Red had just deposited on his desk.

“I trust everything went smoothly.” He looked up at Red and Levi.

“For the most part, we were interrupted.” Red replied, it was useless lying to Bobo, he of course would already know what had happened at the university.

“And Miss Earp she is?”

“A little battered and scared, but otherwise unharmed.” Red responded.

“That is…” Bobo looked at the book and back at Red. “…to be expected with a job of this nature. You did well.”

The sigh of relief Red heaved was so minute it could have been interpreted as him simply breathing out.

Bobo dismissed them with a wave of his hand, attention focused once again on the books on the table, with a smile he flicked carefully through the pages.

The next phase of his plan was ready to start.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed that! Please let me know what you thought in the comments! Not sure when I'll have a new chapter up but hope to have a new one up as soon as possible.
> 
> As always come and chat to me on Tumblr at Rehizle28


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait between these chapters, I appreciate your patience and your kind words, they mean the world to me.

When she’d been a little girl, Waverly had wanted to spend every waking moment with her sisters. She would follow them around relentlessly, begging to be included in their games, in their in jokes and their stories. She would lie awake at night, and dream up ways to make them love her as much as they loved each other.

Four days after the attack on the university and Waverly was starting to think that it was possible to have _too_ much family time.

Willa and Wynonna hadn’t let her out of their sight since Nicole had dropped her off at the homestead. Wynonna had insisted on sleeping in Waverly’s bed with her, and Waverly knew that her sister hadn’t gotten a moment of sleep all night. This was one intrusion Waverly hadn’t minded, she had been loath to sleep alone and Wynonna’s presence was comforting.

What she _did_ mind was being boxed in every second of the day by her two siblings. They had accompanied her to the police station the day after the break in when Waverly had gone to give her statement, despite her protests that it was something she could do by herself.

Willa and Wynonna had sat either side of her as Nicole took down her statement. Each had been equally as annoying and obstructive. Wynonna had jumped between her usual brand of inappropriate jokes (usually at Nicole’s expense) and growled declarations of violence against Waverly’s attackers. Willa had sat in a stony silence, eyes fixed unwavering and untrusting on Nicole. Waverly didn’t know what her sister’s problem with the police officer was and she wouldn’t get a straight answer if she asked anyway.

Waverly had been hoping to have some time alone with Nicole once she had given her statement, but Willa and Wynonna hadn’t given her a chance, whisking her away and out of the station before Waverly could so much as say goodbye to the confused redhead. When she had voiced her desire to hang back Willa had shut her down, insisting that what Waverly needed was rest.

It seemed all Waverly could do for the next few days was rest. Bundled up on the sofa or in her bed, an endless parade of hot soup and tea to soothe the pain in her throat, not allowed up unless it was to go to the bathroom.

Waverly suspected Wynonna would have followed her in there too given half the chance.

“I’m not going to drop dead if I go out of your sight!” Waverly snapped finally the third time she had opened the door to the bathroom to find Wynonna hovering outside. “Why can’t you let me be? I’m fine!”

Wynonna took a step back, regarding Waverly with an expression she very rarely saw, it was open and raw, the pain and hurt that she worked so hard to supress rising to the surface.

“Do you want to know what happened the last time I got a phone call in the middle of the night?” Wynonna’s voice was quiet and Waverly felt the guilt bubble in her stomach as she realised that Wynonna was talking about. “It was when Daddy died.”

“Wy…”

“I have never been more scared than I was the other night.” Wynonna cut her off, stepping forward she cupped Waverly’s face. “My world would fall apart if I lost you baby girl.”

Waverly felt a tear slip down her cheek, Wynonna’s thumb brushing it away.

“I’d never forgive myself if something happened to you.” Wynonna pulled back. “Especially not when we’re all starting to find each other again.” The last words were directed towards Willa as well, who had just entered the kitchen and was leaning in the doorway, watching her sisters with an expression that was hard to decipher.

Willa’s reaction to the attack had surprised Waverly the most, she had assumed that Willa’s initial panic on the night of the attack would have faded to be replaced by her usual apathy once it was established that Waverly was ok. But it hadn’t, Willa had been almost gentle with her, even going so far as to give her a hug the night before when the three of them had been curled up on the sofa watching TV.

It was funny that all the things Waverly had wished for as a child regarding her sisters were coming true. All it had taken was her being attacked by a psycho.

“Wynonna’s right.” Willa announced, moving to stand next to the middle Earp. “The other night was scary for all of us.” Waverly still wasn’t used to hearing the emotion in Willa’s voice, the tone her sister had mostly used to address her for most of her life was one of annoyance.

Waverly felt her own annoyance at their overprotective behaviour melting away. In their own way, they were both (finally, in Willa’s case) showing that they loved her, giving her all she wanted as a child. They were starting to feel like a family again.

She didn’t know how long it would last.

Unfortunately for Waverly, it wouldn’t be long.

* * *

“Knock, knock.”

Waverly looked up from the TV, a wide grin breaking out on her face when she saw Dolls standing in the doorway.

“Dolls! I’m so happy to see you.”

“Wow, you must be company starved if you’re happy to see me.” The Deputy Marshall flashed her a smile as he moved into the room and settled in an armchair.

“As great as they’ve been, it is nice to see a face that _isn’t_ Willa or Wynonna’s.” Waverly admitted.

Dolls chuckled. “They’ve been pretty full on huh?” he looked around, “Where is Wynonna?”

“Full on is a slight understatement.” Waverly replied levering herself up into a seating position. “Wynonna is actually out, they both are, it’s the first time since the attack that Wynonna has left the house, and she was actually quite cryptic about it.” Waverly frowned.

“You know Wynonna. She’s probably gone to sneak a drink by herself.” Dolls chuckled. “When are you being allowed out of the house?”

“That’s true.” Waverly shook her head in exasperated fondness. “I’ve been ready to go back to work now, but Gus won’t let me until tomorrow. I’m going crazy with boredom here.”

“I thought you would be.” Dolls reached into his jacket, pulling a sheaf of folded papers from an inside pocket. “That’s why I brought these over.”

Waverly reached out and took the paper, unfolding it she scanned the first page, realising it was the photocopies she had made for Dolls from the book on gangs.

“Thought you might want to look over it, see if there was anything else helpful.” Dolls said.

“Thank you.” Waverly turned to the next page, stopping when she saw the tattoo designs.

“Are any of them familiar?” Dolls asked when Waverly didn’t speak for a few moments.

“This one.” She replied, pointing to one of the pictures, a small anchor like object with one vertical line dissected at the top and bottom by two horizontal ones. “Red had a tattoo that looked very much like that.”

“Ok.” Dolls took his papers from her even as Waverly tried to stop the shaking in her hands. “I’ll make some calls, see if we can find out who this guy is.”

“Thanks Dolls.”

“How are you holding up?” Doll’s tone took on an uncharacteristic softness, his expression opening up from his usual stoic glare.

“A little jumpy.” Waverly admitted, hands twisting nervously in her lap. “I haven’t been back to the university yet, I can’t quite bring myself too.”

“That will come with time.” Dolls soothed. “What you went through was traumatic, experiences like that tend to leave a mark, not always physical.”

Waverly nodded. “It scared Willa and Wynonna too, I didn’t realised how much like Daddy it was, how much it affected them.”

Dolls stood and moved to stand next to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. “It’s times like these that force us to open our eyes, to realise the things that are the most important and that, sometimes old feuds and past transgressions can be forgiven, moved on from.” His phone beeped and he grimaced as he pulled it out of his pocket. “I have to go, I hope you feel better and I’ll be in contact about the tattoo.” He patted her shoulder once in farewell before showing himself out, leaving Waverly to ponder what he said.

Although he had been talking about Willa and Wynonna in relation to forgiving past transgressions, that was not who Waverly had been thinking of.

The first person that her mind had jumped to had been Nicole, not her sisters.

The attack had put things into perspective somewhat, it had hammered home heavily to Waverly that bad things happened, unpredictable things, that no tomorrow was certain.

All her life she had sat on the side-lines, watching as things happened to others, telling herself that one day she would jump in, make those things happen for her. Change her life.

One day had never come, but maybe it was time it did.

Yes, Nicole had lied, Nicole had kept secrets from her, those facts could not be ignored. But one thing Waverly was certain of was that none of it had been done with any malicious intent. That Nicole had misjudged a situation and made a decision, the wrong one.

But since then Nicole had done her best to make amends, had respected any and all demands that Waverly had made of her. She had proved that her mistake did not define her, that, unlike Champ, Nicole genuinely cared for her, all of her.

Waverly didn’t know what the future held for her and Nicole, if they would work out or if she was just setting herself up for heartbreak.

What she did know was that she was tired of waiting.

* * *

Dolls hurried down an alleyway, cursing under his breath as he checked the time again.

“Earp!” he hissed as he rounded the corner to the bar they had been staking out a couple of weeks before.

The middle Earp paused at the sound of her name, hand hovering over the door handle.

“What are you doing here?” she didn’t turn around and Dolls quickened his pace to stand next to her.

“I could ask you the same question.”

“Nedley texted me, mentioned he’d seen you heading this way with and I quote ‘an expression as dark as night’”

“How poetic of him.” Wynonna grunted, eyes still focused on the door.

“What’s this about Wynonna?”

“None of your business.”

“It is my business if you’re going to do something reckless.” Dolls tried to reason.

“Back off.” Wynonna turned to him finally, eyes flashing in warning and her hand tightened round something hidden in her pocket. “I won’t say it twice.”

Quicker than Dolls expected her to move she had thrown open the door and marched inside, leaving Dolls to scramble behind her.

It was mid-afternoon so the bar was largely empty. The dingy setting was offset by the smell of stale swear and cheap beer.

“Looks like someone forgot to pay the cleaner.” Dolls heard Wynonna mutter as she made a determined beeline for a figure sat on his own at a table at the back of the bar.

Dolls recognised him immediately as the man, Fish, they had questioned outside this very bar. He was watching Wynonna approach, his eyes wide with fear. “Wynonna, I swear I didn’t…”

The sound of Peacemaker hitting the wood of the table cut off his words, sweat beading on his forehead as Wynonna leant her palms on the table.

“Up.” The single word was spoken softly, but it had the desired effect. Fish was on his feet in the blink of an eye.

“Earp.” Dolls warned under his breath, knowing that even if she didn’t acknowledge him she had heard him. Instead she placed a hand between Fish’s shoulder blades and gave him an encouraging shove towards the door. They headed outside, Dolls following, eyeing the patrons warily, hand twitching a few inches from his own gun. The bar was a regular gang hangout and Dolls was under no illusion that knowledge of their presence would be already on its way to some very unsavoury characters.

Nobody made a move as they passed through the door and outside, but Dolls didn’t relax, if anything he grew more uneasy.

Especially when Wynonna slammed Fish against the nearest wall. Hard.

“Start talking.” She snarled.

“I swear Wynonna I had no idea.” Fish stammered over his words.

“You expect me to believe that you didn’t know that your boyfriend would be part of an attack on my sister.” Wynonna tightened her grip on him, her face a mask of pure rage. Dolls didn’t think he had ever seen her look like this.

“He didn’t know what was happening until they had to do it.” Fish struggled slightly, but seemed to realise that it was a futile endeavour. “He didn’t want to do it, but he didn’t have a choice. He tried to stop Red.”

“That is the only reason I haven’t beaten you to pulp.” Wynonna growled.

“It’s not my fault.” Fish whimpered.

At his words Wynonna released him with a heavy sigh. “I know it wasn’t. But they attacked my sister, _my_ little sister.”

“Is she ok.” Fish looked genuinely concerned and Dolls took a step forward, ready to lay a calming hand on Wynonna’s shoulder should she need it.

“How do you think she is?” Wynonna replied, her voice not carrying the bite it had before, but still hard. “She was almost strangled and thrown against a table, she might have been killed if the police hadn’t shown up when they did.” She paused, sighing again before continuing.  “And all for a book.”

“What’s so important about that book?” Dolls used the line of conversation to jump into his own questioning. Fish looked surprised by the change of speaker and didn’t respond for a few moments, until Wynonna nudged him with Peacemaker.

“I don’t know.” Fish stammered. “Levi didn’t know either, he has no idea what Bo…”

Both Wynonna and Dolls’ eyes snapped to Fish’s face as the trapped man cut himself sharply.

“Were you about to say Bobo?” Wynonna asked, her voice shaking with barely repressed anger.

“No.” Fish shook his head firmly. “I didn’t say anything! Please!” he pleaded, tears collecting in the corners of his eyes. “I’m just a grunt, I hang around and pretend I’m a part of it all, but really I’m not. I’m just hanging on.”

Wynonna’s eyes narrowed and the hand holding Peacemaker twitched, prompting a terrified squeak from Fish.

“I’m going to ask once.” She spoke quietly. “Did Bobo order the attack on my sister?”

“They’ll kill me if I say anything.” Fish whimpered.

Wynonna growled, hand drawing back a little. Dolls leapt forward, clamping down a hand on her arm.

“Enough!” he commanded, heaving an internal sigh of relief when Wynonna’s hand lowered. “He doesn’t know anything and hitting him won’t change what happened to Waverly.”

“It’ll make me feel better.”

“It wasn’t anything to do with him.” Dolls reasoned. “And you should focus your efforts on catching the people who actually did it.” jerking his head Dolls directed his next words at Fish. “Get out of here.”

The man didn’t need telling twice, prying himself from Wynonna’s grip he scurried away.

“Why did you let him go? He could have told us where Levi is?” Wynonna glared fiercely at Dolls as he began to lead her back to his SUV.

“You know he wouldn’t do that, and right now you need to calm down.” Dolls warned. “Charging around bullying people and throwing your weight around isn’t going to help anyone, least of all Waverly.”

“Well I can’t sit around and do nothing.” Wynonna pulled her arm out of his grip, stopping by the car she rounded on him. “I need to be protecting herm making sure no one ever hurts her again, and that means finding these bastards.”

Dolls sighed heavily and raised his hands, only placing them on Wynonna’s shoulders when she gave him a nod. “The best thing you can do right now is be at home, with Waverly. Let me find these guys, I promise you I will.”

The anger faded from Wynonna’s expression at his words, body slumping as all the fight left her.

“It’s all my fault.” She mumbled. “God, all this is my fault.”

Dolls frowned. “What’s all your fault? Waverly’s attack?” squeezing her shoulders his frown deepened when she started, as if she had forgotten he was there.

“Nothing, it doesn’t matter, just take me home.”

Dolls knew better than to press the issue, but that didn’t mean he stopped thinking about her words as he drove them back towards the homestead.

* * *

As stir crazy as she had been going trapped in the house, Waverly couldn’t deny the prospect of leaving the homestead for her first shift at Shorty’s since the attack was a daunting one. She had felt safe the past few days, bolstered by the constant company of her sister’s, Dolls and Doc who had been making almost daily visits, determined to keep Waverly entertained with his many stories that had her crying with laughter.

This would be her first time venturing outside, into a crowd of people where any one of them could be someone who wanted to do her harm. Just the thought of it was enough to bring a clammy sweat to the palms of her hands.

Luckily, she wouldn’t be doing it alone. Gus had already promised to be by her side for the entire shift, Wynonna would be coming by after she had finished her own shift at work. Dolls and Doc had both made similar promises to pop by.

As had Nicole.

The officer had sent an awkward rambled message the day before, asking in a very roundabout way if Waverly would mind if she came by after she had finished at the station.

It had been so adorable that Waverly hadn’t been able to hold in the giggle that had escaped when she had read the message.

Waverly had said nothing to Nicole of her recent change of heart and her desire to make a go of whatever was happening between them. Partly because she still hadn’t quite worked out what giving them a chance would entail, and partly because she wanted that conversation to happen in person.

She was aware that her thought process was very familiar to the last time she had planned to reveal to Nicole how she felt and the smaller, pessimistic side of her had worried that she would suffer a similar heartbreak. It was a line of thought she had had to work hard to quash, focusing on instead how the sight of Nicole’s smile made her feel warm and fuzzy inside, how she wanted to know all there was about the redhead, how when she had been at her most scared, the mere sight of Nicole and her presence had banished all of her fear.

These were just a fraction of the reasoning behind Waverly taking the plunge, yes she could get hurt, but the potential upside heavily outweighed the possibility of failure.

Today was the day she stopped sitting on the side lines.

Willa had offered to drop her at work, an offer Waverly had been quick to accept in an attempt to keep their slowly healing relationship moving forward. There were still a definite air of tension between the two of them, neither knowing completely how to be nice to each other with so many years of animosity behind them. As such the ride from the homestead into town was dominated by an almost nervous silence, broken only by awkward small talk.

“I’m so proud of you for going back to work.” Willa’s words as they pulled up in front of Shorty’s were the last thing Waverly was expecting her to say and for a moment she was too shocked too respond.

“Thank you.” She eventually managed to stammer. “For everything over the past few days.” She continued.

Willa’s arms lifted, hand flexing as if she might reach out and take Waverly’s, but the gesture fell short, resulting in an awkward pat to the shoulder.

“You don’t want to be late.” She nodded towards the door of the bar and Waverly was grateful for the end of the conversation. Bidding Willa goodbye she made her way into the bar, accepting the brief squeeze Gus gave her and the longer hug from Shorty who was on his way out.

The bar was quiet so Waverly was able to acclimatise to being around people again. Gus was much better at keeping her distance than Willa and Wynonna, close enough that Waverly felt alone, but far enough away that she didn’t feel smothered.

Like any other news in Purgatory, everyone knew what had happened at the university. Waverly’s status as one of the most beloved, popular people in town (there had been a vote and a sash to prove it), only made the news all the more shocking and she spent a majority of her first couple of hours on shift on the receiving end of concerned expressions, soft pats to her hands and declarations of retribution against her attackers.

The outpouring of support helped to quell some of the nervousness that had plagued her since she had woken up that morning, but it was not enough to dispel it completely and she felt on edge, knowing that something was missing, but unable to identify what it was.

After a few hours Waverly had relaxed into the somewhat familiar routine that come with bar work her hands fixing drinks and tidying tables with little prompting from her brain, much as they had done for the past four years.

Doc had swung by after his last lecture of the day, claiming a seat by the bar he had spent a full hour regaling her with tales of his students that had her snorting with laughter. One particular story about a science major named Jeremy who had no business doing a history module, but always listened with rapt attention to every single word of Doc’s lectures, a dreamy expression in his eyes. Doc had a long line of women, and apparently men, enamoured with him, but Waverly knew he only had eyes for one person, one woman.

A woman who didn’t feel the same way.

Doc left once the evening rush started, proclaiming he’d had enough human interaction for one day. Waverly knew that the real reason was that Dolls had arrived. Whilst the two men in Wynonna’s life tolerated each other, having both of them in the same room for prolonged periods of time was not a good idea and Waverly was grateful to Doc for choosing to be the bigger man on this occasion.

Dolls made brief small talk with Waverly and Gus before settling at a table at the back of the bar. He was waiting for Wynonna and Waverly assumed he must have received the same text as she had from her older sister informing her that she had finished at work and was on her way to Shorty’s.

Despite the bust nature of the Friday night rush Waverly made sure to keep one eye on the door, on the lookout for a certain police deputy.

There had been no more work from Nicole about when she would be stopping by, and although Waverly knew that Nicole was on shift it didn’t stop her looking up hopefully every time the door swung open, only for her heart to sink in disappointment whenever it was anyone but Nicole.

The unsettled feeling in her stomach was still there, a sensation of not feeling completely at ease, and Waverly was starting to suspect that it wouldn’t go away entirely until she saw Nicole.

* * *

Wynonna slammed the door of her truck shut with a heavy sigh. Rolling her neck and shoulders to work out some of the kinks that had built up after standing behind a bar for eight hours she walked towards Shorty’s.

“Good evening.” A voice drifting out of the darkness stopped her. A voice she recognised instantly and she couldn’t help the ripple that shuddered up her spine.

She didn’t return the greeting as he stepped out of the shadows, the light from the bar casting half his face in shadow.

“No ‘good evening Bobo’ for me?” he smirked.

“No evening is good if you’re within 100 feet of me.” Wynonna replied.

Bobo chuckled. “I did miss your dry wit.” He stepped further into her space, she forced herself to remain still, to not give into her repulsion.

“What are you doing here?” she spat through gritted teeth.

“I could ask you the same question.” Bobo replied. “Except in relation to your whereabouts this afternoon.” He cocked his head to one side and coyly arched an eyebrow. “You caused quite a scene at the bar, it’s not very becoming for a young woman to get so…emotional.”

Something in Wynonna snapped at his words and smirk, before her brain registered what was happening she had surged forward, hands clenching tightly in the furs of Bobo’s jacket, slamming him bodily into the side of the bar.

“You swore she would never be targeted.” She hissed, the cold fury she had felt earlier outside the bar flooding back. “You swore to me that she would never be hurt because of one of your schemes.”

Bobo didn’t speak, didn’t ask who Wynonna was talking about. He hadn’t even blinked when she’d grabbed him, his face retaining the smug expression she hated so much.

“You are correct.” He said softly, voice barely audible over the noise coming from the bar. “I did promise that Waverly would never be in any danger, _whilst_ you still upheld your end of our bargain.”

Wynonna’s grip went slack at his words, stepping backwards, desperate to put some space between them.

“What?” Bobo chuckled slightly. “You thought that you could walk away from me, walk away from the deal we made? That I would hold up my promise not to target your sister.”

“I never wanted that deal.” Wynonna croaked.

“I saved you from a lot of horrible things.” Bobo replied. “I made what _you_ did go away. I could have thrown you to the wolves, but I took you in, gave you purpose. All I asked for was a little loyalty in return.”

Wynonna was, for once, lost for words and Bobo closed the distance between them with another step, his voice still low.

“I’ve been pretty discreet since I came back to town Wynonna, but even my patience has limits.”

“What are you talking about?” Wynonna found her voice, strong and defiant.

“I’m talking about your little…display this afternoon.” Bobo cocked his head to one side. “Poking your nose in where it doesn’t belong. If it happens again, I may forget my manners and who knows what would come out.” He paused, eye glinting viciously. “Who knows what _Waverly_ would find out.”

“You son of a bitch.” Wynonna started forward with a growl.

“Ah, ah, ah. Manners Wynonna.” Bobo tutted, moving away from the door, vanishing into the night with one last parting shot thrown over his shoulder.

“I’ll still be expecting you to hold up your end of the bargain Wynonna. I’ll be in touch.”

* * *

Wynonna entered Shorty’s five minutes later, her face an ashen grey as she slumped into one of the bar stools.

Her pallor was noticed immediately by Waverly.

“Wynonna? What’s wrong?” almost vaulting the bar in her bid to grab Wynonna’s hand Waverly smoothed back her sister’s hair with her free hand.

Wynonna took a moment to answer, seemingly stuck in a world of her own. It wasn’t the first time Waverly had seen this look on Wynonna’s face, but she couldn’t ever recall her sister ever looking quite so defeated, despite all the demons Waverly knew she carried.

Licking her lips Wynonna’s eyes finally focused on Waverly’s, the haze clearing as she appeared to come to, taking note of her surroundings for the first time since walking in.

“Nothing’s wrong baby girl.” She assured her. “Just a long shift, too many drunk idiots with terrible chat up lines. Enough to make anyone space out huh?” the pat to Waverly’s hand was uncharacteristically gentle. “How’s your first shift back going? Anyone I need to have words with?”

Just like that Wynonna’s cocky bravado was back, banishing whatever demons were lurking on the surface back to the depths, locked behind a door that Waverly knew she would never open, not until Wynonna was ready to let her in.

Waverly sighed, wishing not for the first time that she could get Wynonna to open up. “Don’t worry, everything has been fine.”

Wynonna grinned, the smile not quite reaching her eyes. “Good, can I get a beer baby girl?”

“Sure.” Waverly moved to fill her sister’s order as Wynonna made her way over to where Dolls was sitting nursing his own drink.

Waverly had just placed Wynonna’s beer in front of her and turned away from the table when the door swung open and Nicole walked in.

When Nicole’s eyes met hers, mouth stretching in a warm smile that had her eyes twinkling brightly, Waverly felt a surge of calm wash over her, all the nervous tension washing away. her feet moved without conscious instruction from her brain, taking her across the room to meet Nicole by the bar with a shy smile.

“Hi.”

“Hi.” Nicole returned the greeting with a nervous smile of her own, glancing down at her feet and clearing her throat. “Can I have a word? In private?” she looked round the bar as if everyone was listening to their conversation.

“Sure.” Waverly looked to Gus, mouth opening to ask for a break, Gus jerked her head behind the bar before the question was voiced.

“Go.” She said. “I can handle things here.” Arching an eyebrow as Waverly mumbled her thanks before beckoning Nicole to follow her.

Waverly opened the first available door, ushering Nicole inside and closing the door behind them. Both women seemed to realise at the same moment that they were in the same storage cupboard where they had kissed the previous week. The realisation had Waverly blushing at the memories, the moan Nicole had made as Waverly pushed her against the crates, the feeling of Nicole’s skin under her palms.

Whilst Waverly is lost in her memories, Nicole seemed to have taken her silence as her cue to start speaking.

“I’m sorry to drag you away from your shift, how’s going by the way? Are you feeling ok?”

Waverly shook herself out of her daze long enough to answer. “It’s ok, I was due a break anyway, it’s been ok thank you. I was nervous at first but it’s been going to get out of the house. I was going a bit mad cooped up with only Willa and Wynonna there to keep me company most of the time.”

“I can imagine that was very trying.” Nicole chuckled, her smile dimmed as her eyes fell on the still evident bruises on Waverly’s throat. “How is…?” she gestured to the injury, eyes hardening in an imitation of a look that Waverly recognised, she had seen it in Wynonna’s eyes many times since the attack.

“It’s healing.”

“I’m going to find them Waverly.” Nicole promised, her voice sounding rougher than usual, as if she were fighting with her emotions.

“I know you will.” Waverly replied. “Is that what you wanted to talk about, the case? Has there been a development?”

“No, I’m afraid there hasn’t.” Nicole suddenly looked very nervous again, rubbing the back of her neck in a gesture that Waverly was becoming familiar with, Nicole was clearly battling internally with herself. “I came to apologise.” Nicole carried on, eyes meeting Waverly’s reluctantly.

Waverly frowned. “What have you got to apologise for?” she wracked her brain trying to think of what Nicole might be talking about.

Nicole coughed before speaking. “The last time we were here in this room, when we…uh…kissed.”

Waverly opened her mouth to respond as realisation dawned, before she could speak Nicole had cut her off, launching into a rambling tirade that she had clearly been bottling up for a while.

“I’ve been meaning to apologise since it happened, but then the attack happened and I was so worried about you. I don’t know what I would have done if something had happened to you Waverly…and I didn’t want to bring it up again so soon because you needed to recover and not think about the kiss. But I’ve needed to say this and just want to say that I’m so sorry, again, Waves. I know you said in the diner that you needed time to figure things out, you needed space and I didn’t give you that. I shouldn’t have kissed you like that, it wasn’t fair on you, this is all so new to you and I should have respected your boundaries, should have held myself in check, regardless of how I feel about you and how much I wanted to kiss you. I completely understand if you’re mad at me, and you don’t want to see me for a while…”

Somewhere in the middle of Nicole’s rambling Waverly stopped listening, focusing instead on how adorable a flustering, rambling Nicole was. How this was the perfect opportunity for her to act on the thoughts that had been dominating her mind for a few days, to show Nicole that the last thing she wanted her to do was…not kiss her.”

“Nicole!” her sharp tone stopped Nicole mid-sentence, her expression frozen in one of fear at what Waverly might have to say, clearly expecting the worst. Stepping forward boldly into her personal space Waverly met her gaze. “Stop talking.” She ordered, before non-too gently grasping the taller woman by the back of her neck and pulling her into a deep kiss.

Swallowing Nicole’s squeak of surprise Waverly couldn’t help but smile into the kiss when Nicole recovered quickly, strong hands grasping her hips and pulling her flush into the taller body as she kissed Waverly back hungrily.

When air became a problem Nicole pulled back, her eyes glazed and breath heaving. “Wait a moment.” She panted as Waverly moved back in to kiss her again. “You’re not mad at me?”

Not wanting to waste another second not kissing Nicole, Waverly surged upwards to claim her lips in a brief searing kiss before trailing her kisses across Nicole’s jaw and down her neck. “No, I’m not mad at you.” She murmured.

“What does this mean?” Nicole asked the same question she had after their last kiss, the same hesitance present, scared that once again there would be no answer.

Only this time, Waverly had an answer for her.

“It means I want you.” Waverly growled, mouth still exploring the expanse of Nicole’s throat, the motion denoting the carnal meaning behind her words, delighting in the soft gasps her ministrations were eliciting. Pulling back, she cupped Nicole’s cheeks, forcing her to make eye contact. “I want us, whatever this is.” Her voice was strong and sincere, her eyes wide and hopeful.

Nicole looked back at her, her own expression once of disbelief, brain clearly working to catch up, Waverly could pinpoint the exact moment that it did, Nicole’s expression morphing into one of pure elation, a smile so wide that Waverly couldn’t help but grin along with her.

Then Nicole was kissing her, hard and passionate and uninhibited and Waverly felt herself melting because God, had Nicole been holding out on her. She felt herself moving and seconds later Nicole had her pressed up against the crates that lined the back wall, their positions reversed from the last time. This time it was Waverly groaning loudly, Waverly pulling Nicole closer.

The kiss was brought to an abrupt end when Nicole’s hands ghosted up her sides, fingers pressing into the still healing bruise that spanned Waverly’s left side. A hiss of pain slipped through her lips and Nicole’s hands whipped away from her immediately, face pulling back, eyes concerned. “Waverly? Did I do…is this too…?”

Realisation dawned in her eyes. “Oh, your side! I’m so sorry.”

“It’s ok.” Waverly was quick to reassure the other woman, hands already reaching for her.

Nicole surprised her by moving out of the reach of her grasping hands, sinking instead to her knees, a movement that had Waverly’s imagination working in overdrive before she reigned it in, forcing herself to focus.

Nicole glanced up, hands toying with the hem of Waverly’s shirt. “Can I?” the request was soft and Waverly nodded before the question had been fully voiced. Nicole slowly inched the shirt up, revealing the nasty purple and black bruise that stretched from the top of her trousers up across her ribcage. Waverly sucked in a shaky breath as Nicole’s breath whispered over the tender skin, that’s same breath catching in her throat when Nicole’s lips pressed gently, reverently, against the bruise, her eyes closing and head falling back against the crate with a low thud.

It occurred to her that anyone could walk in and find them like this, and the thought sent an odd thrill through her, had her urging Nicole to her feet so she could reconnect their lips in earnest.

“God Waverly.” Nicole moaned as Waverly nipped at her lower lip playfully. Waverly hummed in response, threading her hands into the hair at the nape of Nicole’s neck, keeping her close.

The shattering of breaking glass was enough to pull the pair from their bubble, both reluctant to part lips.

“Wow.” Nicole breathed once the ability to form words had returned.

“Yeah.” Waverly agreed. “God, you’re a good kisser.”

“You’re not so bad yourself.” Nicole chuckled, ducking her head to steal another kiss. This too was ended by the sound of another glass shattering, accompanied by several cheers.

“Ugghhh.” Waverly sighed. “That’s my cue I think.”

“I suppose.” Nicole echoed the sigh, hands tightening round her waist. “To be continued?” she asked hopefully.

“Definitely to be continued.” Waverly murmured into the next kiss.

It took a couple of moments to drag themselves away from each other, each last kiss turning into one more, but eventually they were presentable enough to head back, although their smiles were definitely wider than when they had went in.

In the busyness of the bar, only Gus noticed the pair returning, noticed the slight pink hue in their cheeks and the conspiratorial looks they cast each other as Waverly headed back behind the bar and Nicole over to greet Wynonna and Dolls.

“Finally.” She muttered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wayhaught is finally a thing (in this fic at least)! I know you've all been waiting for this and that last scene has been one of my favourite to write out of this whole fic! 
> 
> Please do let me know what you thought in the comments and come chat to me on Tumblr if you wish.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed that, please do let me know what you thought, kudos and comments appreciated! Let me know if you'd like to see more of this, I will continue writing but it'd be nicer if people actually wanted me to continue! You can find me on tumblr by searching Rehizle28, I don't do much on there atm but if people like the story I can use that to post updates and answer any questions you may have. I hope to have another chapter written soon but i have a deplorable habit of having at least 3 stories on the go at any given time, plus a full time job and a unhealthy obsession with video gaming so will do my best to update within the next few days! Until next time!


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